WEBVTT

00:05.470 --> 00:07.359
just a six feet away . Double are

00:07.359 --> 00:07.050
minimal .

00:17.300 --> 00:19.522
Well , hello , everyone . Thank you for

00:19.522 --> 00:21.689
joining us today for this virtual town

00:21.689 --> 00:23.522
hall . I'm of course , secretary

00:23.522 --> 00:25.578
Defense . Mark Esper . I'm joined by

00:25.578 --> 00:25.290
the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of

00:25.290 --> 00:27.790
Staff , General Mark Milley , and by

00:27.790 --> 00:29.734
the senior enlisted advisor to the

00:29.734 --> 00:32.080
chairman Cologne Lopez . Thank you both

00:32.080 --> 00:34.080
for joining me here today . I first

00:34.080 --> 00:36.090
want to thank the 55,000 Americans

00:36.200 --> 00:38.256
service members who are still out on

00:38.256 --> 00:40.500
the streets of our great nation helping

00:40.620 --> 00:42.920
their fellow citizens were in many

00:42.920 --> 00:45.142
cities . To this day , we , of course ,

00:45.142 --> 00:47.364
have the National Guard 45,000 strong .

00:47.364 --> 00:49.309
That number , who is out helping ?

00:49.380 --> 00:51.269
Whether is testing , distributing

00:51.269 --> 00:53.880
supplies , assisting their governors in

00:53.890 --> 00:56.001
a number of ways , shapes and forms .

00:56.080 --> 00:58.191
But I'm just very proud of what we've

00:58.191 --> 01:00.610
done as a service as the armed services

01:00.610 --> 01:02.721
to support the American people and to

01:02.721 --> 01:04.943
help us fight the screwing A virus . As

01:04.943 --> 01:07.054
you know , there is a light gets even

01:07.054 --> 01:09.110
stronger at the end of the tunnel at

01:09.110 --> 01:11.166
this point time . But that said , we

01:11.166 --> 01:13.388
are also still preparing for the future

01:13.388 --> 01:15.277
and making sure we understand the

01:15.277 --> 01:17.277
trajectory of the Corona virus . At

01:17.277 --> 01:19.221
this point time we have ah , we We

01:19.221 --> 01:21.388
contained a stick by our three parties

01:21.388 --> 01:23.332
that we've outlined from beginning

01:23.332 --> 01:25.443
going back to January . That is party

01:25.443 --> 01:27.277
number one . Protect our service

01:27.277 --> 01:29.332
members are department civilians and

01:29.332 --> 01:31.388
their families number to insure . We

01:31.388 --> 01:33.554
maintain our national security mission

01:33.554 --> 01:35.777
capabilities , and number three provide

01:35.777 --> 01:37.721
a full support to the whole nation

01:37.721 --> 01:39.721
whole of government response . With

01:39.721 --> 01:41.666
that , as we've moved through this

01:41.666 --> 01:43.888
virus of the last few months and fought

01:43.888 --> 01:45.777
the good fight , we have provided

01:45.777 --> 01:47.943
additional guidance for senior leaders

01:47.943 --> 01:50.110
and commanders and continue to protect

01:50.110 --> 01:52.110
our people and preserve operational

01:52.110 --> 01:54.332
readiness . First , we're transitioning

01:54.332 --> 01:56.443
to a conditions based phased approach

01:56.443 --> 01:58.499
to personnel , movement and travel .

01:58.499 --> 02:00.721
That memory hand memorandum has gone up

02:00.721 --> 02:02.610
this week . It will improve these

02:02.610 --> 02:04.830
conditions , the travel and deployment

02:04.830 --> 02:06.941
as conditions warrant . This guidance

02:06.941 --> 02:08.830
will lessen the burden on D . O D

02:08.830 --> 02:10.774
personnel and their families while

02:10.774 --> 02:12.997
ensuring continued operations in a safe

02:12.997 --> 02:14.997
manner . The second we're providing

02:14.997 --> 02:17.163
commanders with additional guidance as

02:17.163 --> 02:19.274
they look to change health protection

02:19.274 --> 02:20.941
condition levels at D o . D .

02:20.941 --> 02:23.108
Installations , that guidance has gone

02:23.108 --> 02:25.330
out as well . These measures will allow

02:25.330 --> 02:25.140
our commanders make risk based

02:25.140 --> 02:27.890
decisions as they begin to return to

02:27.890 --> 02:29.946
normal operations in line with local

02:29.946 --> 02:32.000
conditions , CDC guidance and in

02:32.000 --> 02:33.778
consultation with their medical

02:33.778 --> 02:36.290
leadership . Yesterday I had the chance

02:36.290 --> 02:38.401
to visit the Marines at Parris Island

02:38.401 --> 02:40.290
to see first hand how the core is

02:40.290 --> 02:42.401
conducting basic training as we adapt

02:42.401 --> 02:44.512
the force to nor normal . It was very

02:44.512 --> 02:46.512
interesting to watch the trading to

02:46.512 --> 02:48.623
understand how they've adapted marine

02:48.623 --> 02:50.790
basic training and some of the lessons

02:50.790 --> 02:52.846
learned they have taken already with

02:52.846 --> 02:54.760
regard to the coronavirus . As we

02:54.760 --> 02:56.871
continue to do our part , we must all

02:56.871 --> 02:59.038
continue to reduce the spread of virus

02:59.038 --> 03:01.350
by including proper hijinks , social

03:01.350 --> 03:03.500
distancing , using face covers ,

03:03.510 --> 03:05.621
coverings and the other measures that

03:05.621 --> 03:07.343
we've put out in the number of

03:07.343 --> 03:09.510
memorandum is and guidance and virtual

03:09.510 --> 03:11.677
town halls like this again , that will

03:11.677 --> 03:13.621
be important . Teoh protecting our

03:13.621 --> 03:15.954
force going forward and with that again ,

03:15.954 --> 03:17.677
once again proud of all of our

03:17.677 --> 03:19.899
personnel as answer our nation's call .

03:19.899 --> 03:22.066
I'm confident that we will get through

03:22.066 --> 03:21.740
this and we will be stronger than

03:21.740 --> 03:23.962
before . And with that , I like to turn

03:23.962 --> 03:26.018
over the mic to the trouble of Joint

03:26.018 --> 03:27.796
Chiefs of Staff for his opening

03:27.796 --> 03:29.518
comments . Thank Secretary and

03:29.518 --> 03:29.350
appreciate that it's a great honor ,

03:29.870 --> 03:32.060
really a privilege to be here and

03:32.060 --> 03:34.770
talking to , I think , well , over one

03:34.770 --> 03:36.826
million , and I'm told it approaches

03:36.826 --> 03:38.770
two million people on the Net on .

03:38.770 --> 03:40.826
That's great . It's great to have an

03:40.826 --> 03:42.937
opportunity toe , speak with everyone

03:42.937 --> 03:44.881
and get a little bit of feedback .

03:44.881 --> 03:46.992
We've got a whole series of questions

03:46.992 --> 03:46.130
here and want to get to those questions .

03:46.130 --> 03:48.241
But before we do that , I just wanted

03:48.241 --> 03:50.490
to let everyone know how very inspired

03:50.990 --> 03:53.370
Secretary I seaq and really all the

03:53.370 --> 03:55.592
senior leaders here in Washington , D .

03:55.592 --> 03:58.120
C . Really inspired by the performance

03:58.120 --> 04:00.231
of the United States military . Since

04:00.231 --> 04:02.398
the beginning of this crisis , we have

04:02.398 --> 04:05.770
had literally tens of thousands of

04:05.780 --> 04:08.810
folks in uniform active guard reserve

04:08.810 --> 04:10.699
go into harm's way to protect the

04:10.699 --> 04:12.643
American people on that has been a

04:12.643 --> 04:14.477
remarkable achievement , and the

04:14.477 --> 04:16.699
results been amazingly effective on the

04:16.699 --> 04:18.921
contribution the United States military

04:18.921 --> 04:21.190
in support of FEMA and HHS , has been

04:21.190 --> 04:23.079
extraordinary and to help out the

04:23.079 --> 04:25.470
American people . So thanks for all of

04:25.470 --> 04:27.526
you and what you do every day and at

04:27.526 --> 04:29.359
the same time we've been able to

04:29.359 --> 04:31.414
achieve the secretary's objectives ,

04:31.414 --> 04:33.830
which is protect the force and and not

04:33.830 --> 04:35.830
only help the American people , but

04:35.830 --> 04:37.997
also maintain high levels of readiness

04:37.997 --> 04:40.163
to assure that our day to day missions

04:40.163 --> 04:42.750
of deterring adversaries and and making

04:42.750 --> 04:44.806
sure that we help friends and allies

04:44.806 --> 04:47.028
around the world on to prevent any sort

04:47.028 --> 04:49.139
of outbreaks of violence and war eyes

04:49.139 --> 04:51.139
done every single day . Eso whether

04:51.139 --> 04:53.028
you're flying a ship or flying an

04:53.028 --> 04:55.194
airplane Oh , are sailing in a ship if

04:55.194 --> 04:57.083
you're in a sub or if you're in a

04:57.083 --> 04:58.861
missile silo or if you're in an

04:58.861 --> 05:00.861
infantry battalion of a Marine Army

05:00.861 --> 05:02.972
unit . What you're doing is important

05:02.972 --> 05:05.139
on we . Thank you for doing that every

05:05.139 --> 05:05.110
single day . Keep your eye on the

05:05.110 --> 05:07.054
mission . Continue to take care of

05:07.054 --> 05:09.166
yourselves . Continue to take care of

05:09.166 --> 05:11.054
your family's on DWI . Definitely

05:11.054 --> 05:13.200
appreciate your service every single

05:13.200 --> 05:15.340
day . So thank you . And I'll turn it

05:15.340 --> 05:17.562
over right now to the SEAQ . But thanks

05:17.562 --> 05:19.340
again . We look forward to your

05:19.340 --> 05:21.284
questions . Thank you , Chairman .

05:21.284 --> 05:23.396
Thank you , Mr Secretary . So now the

05:23.396 --> 05:25.451
time in this particular town hall is

05:25.451 --> 05:27.229
critical . As we begin our face

05:27.229 --> 05:29.284
approach to ah relaxing restrictions

05:29.284 --> 05:31.507
and reopening some of the services that

05:31.507 --> 05:33.729
have been shut down since the beginning

05:33.729 --> 05:36.760
off off the pandemic . But we are very

05:36.760 --> 05:38.560
cognizant that this changes are

05:38.560 --> 05:41.220
impacting even with the restrictions ,

05:41.220 --> 05:43.331
you and your family . So we encourage

05:43.331 --> 05:45.553
you to continue to send the feedback to

05:45.553 --> 05:47.720
us so that we can go ahead and provide

05:47.720 --> 05:49.776
the best solutions to the issues . I

05:49.776 --> 05:51.609
would like to point that the low

05:51.609 --> 05:53.664
infection and the low more mortality

05:53.664 --> 05:55.664
rate in the Department of Defense .

05:55.664 --> 05:59.020
It's been critical based on the actions

05:59.020 --> 06:01.020
that each and every one of you have

06:01.020 --> 06:03.242
taken following the guidance and making

06:03.242 --> 06:05.409
sure that you are here by the guidance

06:05.409 --> 06:07.631
that is provided by the department . So

06:07.631 --> 06:09.687
I want to commend you for that . And

06:09.687 --> 06:11.687
also would like to tell you that we

06:11.687 --> 06:13.853
look forward to your questions because

06:13.853 --> 06:15.798
again , we have a conditions based

06:15.798 --> 06:17.909
approach . Studies guidance driven or

06:17.909 --> 06:20.020
feet back driven by the comments that

06:20.020 --> 06:22.298
you provided . So please keep it comin .

06:22.298 --> 06:24.464
Come with that , sir , I would like to

06:24.464 --> 06:26.687
go ahead and , uh , go go ahead and get

06:26.687 --> 06:28.409
started . Take the questions ,

06:28.409 --> 06:30.742
gentlemen . I'm Commander Morgan Murphy .

06:30.742 --> 06:30.460
Let's just get right into the questions .

06:30.460 --> 06:33.080
The first comes from Melinda Carol Fail ,

06:33.090 --> 06:35.690
who works for the air force . Mr .

06:35.690 --> 06:37.857
Secretary , this question is for you ,

06:37.857 --> 06:40.440
she writes . I'm a d o d civilian and

06:40.440 --> 06:42.384
have been successfully teleworking

06:42.384 --> 06:44.750
since the 18th of March . How can I be

06:44.750 --> 06:47.650
assured that my workspace is cleaned

06:47.950 --> 06:50.550
safe and maintained , according to the

06:50.550 --> 06:52.439
CDC guidelines , in order to feel

06:52.439 --> 06:54.606
confident to return to the workplace ?

06:54.700 --> 06:57.300
If I don't feel safe , May I continue

06:57.300 --> 06:59.610
to telework First ball Melinda , Thank

06:59.610 --> 07:01.777
you for your service to our country is

07:01.777 --> 07:03.554
a gov civilian . It's It's very

07:03.554 --> 07:05.277
important what you do , and we

07:05.277 --> 07:07.443
appreciate again your service . Let me

07:07.443 --> 07:09.499
say that we are not going to open up

07:09.499 --> 07:11.499
the Pentagon or other installations

07:11.499 --> 07:13.554
unless we are confident that it is a

07:13.554 --> 07:15.332
safe place toe work that is our

07:15.332 --> 07:17.443
commitment to the force . I know that

07:17.443 --> 07:19.443
commanders and office directors and

07:19.443 --> 07:21.610
managers air making those decisions on

07:21.610 --> 07:23.970
a , uh , presently with regard opening

07:23.970 --> 07:26.120
up . I not will tell you . In some

07:26.120 --> 07:28.330
cases we have D o D civilians or

07:28.340 --> 07:30.340
uniformed personnel who have unique

07:30.340 --> 07:32.562
circumstances , whether they have their

07:32.562 --> 07:34.451
own vulnerability or maybe family

07:34.451 --> 07:36.618
members at home that they're concerned

07:36.618 --> 07:38.840
about . And in all those cases we would

07:38.840 --> 07:40.896
ask that the commanders , the office

07:40.896 --> 07:42.840
directors or managers to deal with

07:42.840 --> 07:44.951
those on a case by case basis to make

07:44.951 --> 07:47.062
sure that we're not putting people in

07:47.062 --> 07:48.896
an unsafe environment that could

07:48.896 --> 07:48.750
transmit itself back home or something

07:48.750 --> 07:51.080
like that . So we will We will take it

07:51.090 --> 07:53.257
on a case by case approach , but we're

07:53.257 --> 07:55.479
not gonna ask anybody come back to work

07:55.479 --> 07:57.257
in an unsafe environment . Mr .

07:57.257 --> 07:59.368
Chairman , this follow up question is

07:59.368 --> 08:01.423
for you . Many have speculated about

08:01.423 --> 08:03.757
the effectiveness of an antibodies test .

08:03.757 --> 08:05.868
Is the department planning and bodies

08:05.868 --> 08:07.812
testing ? We are . In fact , we're

08:07.812 --> 08:09.979
doing some anybody testing right now .

08:09.979 --> 08:13.380
Um , and we're expanding that online .

08:13.390 --> 08:15.790
Uh , hopefully we'll be looking at

08:15.790 --> 08:17.957
prioritizing the various tears that we

08:17.957 --> 08:20.179
have and will be doing antibody testing

08:20.179 --> 08:22.910
for critical tier one units , such as

08:22.910 --> 08:25.077
those of going toe subs of the nuclear

08:25.077 --> 08:27.250
triad or or some of our quick reaction

08:27.250 --> 08:29.361
forces . So the short answer is yes .

08:29.640 --> 08:31.418
For the anybody testing and the

08:31.418 --> 08:33.084
secondary Part of that is for

08:33.470 --> 08:36.050
convalescent plasma eso Part of that ,

08:36.440 --> 08:38.820
um , anybody testing is not only to

08:38.820 --> 08:40.987
make sure that you have so many bodies

08:40.987 --> 08:42.764
and you may have some degree of

08:42.764 --> 08:44.931
immunity as an individual , but we may

08:44.931 --> 08:47.042
want to ask you to stick your arm out

08:47.042 --> 08:50.180
and donate blood in order to give t do

08:50.180 --> 08:52.180
it through the process and get some

08:52.180 --> 08:54.291
plasma . And what that can then do is

08:54.291 --> 08:56.513
help others who especially severely ill

08:56.710 --> 08:59.830
on if we can do that and we'll be on ah ,

08:59.840 --> 09:01.840
on a good path towards getting some

09:01.840 --> 09:03.784
really powerful therapeutics , and

09:03.784 --> 09:06.007
there's a lot of people working on that

09:06.007 --> 09:05.650
right now , But the short answer is yes .

09:05.740 --> 09:07.780
We do intend to incorporate anybody

09:07.780 --> 09:10.470
testing throughout the force . This

09:10.470 --> 09:12.637
next question comes from Tech Sergeant

09:12.637 --> 09:14.620
Justin Greco , who works at dIsa

09:14.620 --> 09:16.676
headquarters Jock at Fort Meade . He

09:16.676 --> 09:19.370
asks , due to the rising costs of goods

09:19.370 --> 09:21.380
and services around the world , has

09:21.380 --> 09:23.436
there been any thought to increasing

09:23.436 --> 09:25.380
the B S ? That's the basic housing

09:25.380 --> 09:27.602
basic allowance for subsistence . We're

09:27.602 --> 09:29.930
starting a temporary Conus cost of

09:29.930 --> 09:32.570
living adjustment in high cost areas ,

09:32.770 --> 09:34.860
he writes . I have already seen the

09:34.860 --> 09:37.082
cost of goods rise at the commissary up

09:37.082 --> 09:40.060
to 15 to 200% plus , for example , a

09:40.340 --> 09:42.420
pound of cheap ground beef has gone

09:42.420 --> 09:46.270
from $2.30 a pound to almost $6 . I

09:46.270 --> 09:48.660
know my grocery calls have gone up and

09:48.660 --> 09:50.716
some junior enlisted families on one

09:50.716 --> 09:52.870
income . I have mentioned things were

09:52.870 --> 09:55.310
getting pretty tight turns over the

09:55.310 --> 09:58.540
SEAQ cancer . Thank you and thank you ,

09:58.540 --> 10:00.318
Sergeant Greco , for that great

10:00.318 --> 10:02.373
question , and clearly the financial

10:02.373 --> 10:04.990
impact has not been overlooked at any

10:04.990 --> 10:07.360
stage off this pandemic response by the

10:07.360 --> 10:09.471
department . But what I would like to

10:09.471 --> 10:11.582
start with is that we have mechanisms

10:11.582 --> 10:13.804
to go ahead and plus up the ability for

10:13.804 --> 10:16.027
family , especially those families that

10:16.027 --> 10:17.971
are out of work , to be able to go

10:17.971 --> 10:19.804
ahead and be able to sustain the

10:19.804 --> 10:21.860
feeding and care of their families .

10:21.860 --> 10:24.010
But regarding the B A is the basic

10:24.010 --> 10:26.180
allowance for subsistence questions ,

10:26.190 --> 10:28.246
the cost of living and pay races and

10:28.246 --> 10:30.930
other monetary benefits are negotiated

10:30.930 --> 10:34.090
during every budget cycle every year .

10:34.140 --> 10:36.610
And I am sure that the impacts of co

10:36.610 --> 10:39.110
bit and the pandemic on the increasing

10:39.110 --> 10:41.770
goods will be reflected here in future

10:42.410 --> 10:44.440
national defense authorization acts

10:44.920 --> 10:48.000
reviews . And I would ask Starting

10:48.000 --> 10:50.111
Greco . I know you can't respond live

10:50.111 --> 10:52.222
right now , but maybe you can send me

10:52.222 --> 10:54.444
an email later . I see his logo was the

10:54.444 --> 10:54.170
Philadelphia Flyers , and I'm just

10:54.170 --> 10:56.470
curious why he would support that team

10:56.480 --> 10:58.702
as opposed to , say , the Boston Bruins

10:58.702 --> 11:00.869
or the New York Rangers . Yeah , maybe

11:00.869 --> 11:02.758
for the Pittsburgh Penguins . The

11:02.758 --> 11:04.591
Penguins on my gun . Watch out ,

11:04.591 --> 11:06.424
Sergeant Greco , sir . This next

11:06.424 --> 11:08.550
question is for you , Mr Secretary .

11:08.940 --> 11:11.000
Turning from personal budgets now to

11:11.000 --> 11:12.889
the department's budget , there's

11:12.889 --> 11:15.056
speculation that cuts may be coming to

11:15.056 --> 11:17.090
the military because of lost tax

11:17.090 --> 11:19.610
revenue during Kobe . 19 . What's your

11:19.610 --> 11:22.340
position on future cuts ? And how could

11:22.340 --> 11:24.284
this affect our efforts to counter

11:24.284 --> 11:26.890
China and Russia ? Well , you know , a

11:26.890 --> 11:29.530
budget is an important part of ah of

11:29.590 --> 11:31.479
providing for national security .

11:31.479 --> 11:33.646
Lawmakers recognize that the president

11:33.646 --> 11:35.701
has recognized it in Under President

11:35.701 --> 11:37.812
Trump . We've had three very good you

11:37.812 --> 11:39.812
years of budget increases that have

11:39.812 --> 11:41.979
allowed us to rebuild readiness and to

11:41.979 --> 11:44.090
modernize the force . But as you look

11:44.090 --> 11:46.146
at what's transpired in the last few

11:46.146 --> 11:45.950
months , we recognize that the Congress

11:45.950 --> 11:49.380
has spent over $3 trillion to deal with

11:49.380 --> 11:51.269
Corona virus , and it's been very

11:51.269 --> 11:53.436
helpful to the American people . There

11:53.436 --> 11:54.991
is talk about another major

11:54.991 --> 11:56.991
supplemental bill , possibly in the

11:56.991 --> 11:59.200
trains as well , So if you look at our

11:59.200 --> 12:02.210
national debt today , it's over $25

12:02.210 --> 12:04.210
trillion . So what does that mean ?

12:04.210 --> 12:06.154
That means that our not to get too

12:06.154 --> 12:08.377
technical but the ratio of our our debt

12:08.377 --> 12:11.660
toward GDP is 121% over 100 20% . It

12:11.660 --> 12:13.604
hasn't been that way for decades ,

12:13.604 --> 12:15.660
maybe not since the end of World War

12:15.660 --> 12:18.400
Two . So the country faces a tough

12:18.730 --> 12:21.060
fiscal situation that's going to

12:21.060 --> 12:23.020
require some hard choices . And at

12:23.020 --> 12:25.076
times like that , people look to cut

12:25.076 --> 12:27.298
discretionary spending of which D O . D

12:27.298 --> 12:29.464
is one of those and my view has been ,

12:29.464 --> 12:31.353
and I've said it publicly on many

12:31.353 --> 12:33.880
occasions that in order to sustain this

12:33.880 --> 12:35.940
progress , we've made in terms of

12:36.580 --> 12:38.691
taking care of our people in terms of

12:38.691 --> 12:40.636
implementing that national defense

12:40.636 --> 12:42.524
strategy in terms of dealing with

12:42.524 --> 12:44.580
strategic competitors China and then

12:44.580 --> 12:47.440
Russia , what we need is 3% 3% to 5%

12:47.530 --> 12:51.040
real growth annually to deal with that ,

12:51.050 --> 12:53.217
and I think that will continue to be a

12:53.217 --> 12:55.217
challenge . I've been talking about

12:55.217 --> 12:57.272
this for a few a few years now since

12:57.272 --> 12:58.994
since my early days , his army

12:58.994 --> 13:01.161
secretary and since my days now coming

13:01.161 --> 13:03.217
on a year as secretary defense eso .

13:03.217 --> 13:05.439
That's why we will continue to make the

13:05.439 --> 13:07.610
case . Why Dio Dini's that increasing

13:07.610 --> 13:09.666
top line , How it's important to our

13:09.666 --> 13:12.310
people . Our families are dia de

13:12.310 --> 13:14.550
civilians and our service members , of

13:14.550 --> 13:16.440
course , but also readiness and

13:16.440 --> 13:18.960
modernization . Ah , the upkeep of our

13:18.960 --> 13:21.071
homes . Our installations are bases .

13:21.450 --> 13:23.690
But that said , we don't necessary to

13:23.690 --> 13:26.290
control that The Congress does in many

13:26.290 --> 13:28.512
ways . So what we need to do is we need

13:28.512 --> 13:30.679
to tighten our own belts . And so I've

13:30.679 --> 13:32.568
made is one of its built into our

13:32.568 --> 13:34.679
national fence . Strategy is reform ,

13:34.679 --> 13:36.790
and that means all of us looking hard

13:36.790 --> 13:39.012
at what we're doing and ask ourselves ,

13:39.012 --> 13:41.179
Do we still need to do that , or do we

13:41.179 --> 13:40.510
need to do it in a way that which we've

13:40.510 --> 13:42.677
been doing it ? Are there more ways to

13:42.677 --> 13:44.900
save time , money or manpower in order

13:44.900 --> 13:46.970
to reallocate those things , time ,

13:46.970 --> 13:48.748
money or manpower in the higher

13:48.748 --> 13:50.748
priority items ? So that's going to

13:50.748 --> 13:52.914
continue to be a focus of mine again ,

13:52.914 --> 13:55.137
we can only control so much of our fate

13:55.137 --> 13:57.359
when it comes to the top line . We need

13:57.359 --> 13:56.970
that increased top line , but at the

13:56.970 --> 13:59.081
same time everybody , every manager ,

13:59.081 --> 14:01.248
every leader , every commander , every

14:01.248 --> 14:03.359
director , every supervisor has to do

14:03.359 --> 14:05.581
what they can t help tighten the budget

14:05.581 --> 14:08.010
so we can get a much as we can from

14:08.010 --> 14:09.788
those precious dollars that the

14:09.788 --> 14:11.899
American taxpayers give us every year

14:11.899 --> 14:14.010
to defend our great country . So this

14:14.010 --> 14:16.121
next question is for you as well came

14:16.121 --> 14:18.730
in from Major Frank Malik I of U S Air

14:18.730 --> 14:20.508
Force at Canadian Forces Base ,

14:20.508 --> 14:23.850
Winnipeg . He asked your memorandum for

14:23.860 --> 14:26.290
a transition to a conditions based

14:26.300 --> 14:29.060
phased approach for personnel movement

14:29.350 --> 14:31.750
outlines criteria for host nations that

14:31.750 --> 14:34.240
host greater than 1000 personnel but

14:34.240 --> 14:36.570
does not outline criteria for those of

14:36.570 --> 14:38.940
us stationed in nations hosting smaller

14:38.940 --> 14:41.320
numbers . Can you provide the criteria

14:41.650 --> 14:43.428
which must be met for personnel

14:43.428 --> 14:46.150
movement to resume into our host nation

14:46.160 --> 14:47.993
with a smaller number of D o . D

14:47.993 --> 14:49.993
personnel ? Sure , you know that we

14:49.993 --> 14:52.130
have did the personnel on 140 plus

14:52.130 --> 14:54.352
countries around the world . So what we

14:54.352 --> 14:56.241
didn't want to do is get into the

14:56.241 --> 14:58.463
business of trying to list every single

14:58.463 --> 14:57.880
location around the world in which we

14:57.880 --> 14:59.850
have people . But to answer the

14:59.850 --> 15:01.961
question directly , the same criteria

15:01.961 --> 15:04.017
that are outlined in that memorandum

15:04.017 --> 15:06.190
for the countries listed are the same

15:06.190 --> 15:08.570
criteria that apply for Canada and any

15:08.570 --> 15:10.570
number of dozens of other countries

15:10.570 --> 15:12.792
where we have US personnel . So it will

15:12.792 --> 15:14.959
be both an installation , all approach

15:14.959 --> 15:17.070
in terms of the assessment of certain

15:17.070 --> 15:19.181
criteria , the installation on . Then

15:19.181 --> 15:19.030
there's the regional , in this case ,

15:19.160 --> 15:21.271
Canada worth the region of Canada . I

15:21.271 --> 15:23.493
don't know which which province is in .

15:23.770 --> 15:25.820
We would still apply the opening up

15:25.820 --> 15:27.876
America criteria . So it's the three

15:27.876 --> 15:30.098
basic criteria . Do we see a decline in

15:30.098 --> 15:32.264
cases over 14 day period ? Do we see a

15:32.264 --> 15:34.560
decline in symptoms over 14 14 date

15:34.570 --> 15:36.737
period , and is there adequate medical

15:36.737 --> 15:39.014
capacity ? And I'm referring back Teoh .

15:39.014 --> 15:41.014
The memorandum went out in the past

15:41.014 --> 15:43.014
week or so with this , you know the

15:43.014 --> 15:45.500
verbatim , uh , listing of the criteria .

15:45.500 --> 15:47.722
But commanders will apply that same the

15:47.722 --> 15:49.667
same standards and principles with

15:49.667 --> 15:51.611
regard to lifting restrictions for

15:51.611 --> 15:53.833
either unit travel or personal travel .

15:54.650 --> 15:56.800
Sectary Chairman . This questions for

15:56.800 --> 15:58.990
both of you . Beth Urban , who's

15:58.990 --> 16:01.323
stationed in Goldsboro , North Carolina ,

16:01.323 --> 16:03.323
asks , What is the military done to

16:03.323 --> 16:05.434
implement new training guidelines for

16:05.434 --> 16:08.300
senior leaders and new recruits ? What

16:08.300 --> 16:11.380
are the training lessons learned ? No ,

16:11.390 --> 16:13.557
I'll take first step that since I came

16:13.557 --> 16:15.723
back from Paris Island yesterday and I

16:15.723 --> 16:17.668
had a good discussion with the the

16:17.668 --> 16:19.834
commanders on the ground with Sergeant

16:19.834 --> 16:21.779
Major and with the drills who were

16:21.779 --> 16:23.668
taking the recruits through basic

16:23.668 --> 16:25.779
training . And first of all , they've

16:25.779 --> 16:28.001
had very good success rates with regard

16:28.001 --> 16:30.057
to applying the memorandum is we put

16:30.057 --> 16:32.240
out the guidance . We put out the

16:32.250 --> 16:34.870
provision of PPE and other things . So

16:34.870 --> 16:37.270
on an average class coming in each week

16:37.280 --> 16:40.110
or so of 300 to 400 on average , they

16:40.110 --> 16:43.030
find that one person has been infected

16:43.040 --> 16:45.900
and usually mild or no symptoms . So

16:45.900 --> 16:48.122
and they're able to , through different

16:48.122 --> 16:50.660
practices , separate and treat and take

16:50.660 --> 16:52.771
care of that . You know , when I went

16:52.771 --> 16:54.827
through when I was watching training

16:54.827 --> 16:57.049
yesterday , watching Marines and feudal

16:57.049 --> 16:59.160
training , obstacle course , you name

16:59.160 --> 17:01.216
it , what they were doing is they're

17:01.216 --> 17:03.382
going through the training . They were

17:03.382 --> 17:05.549
appropriately , socially distance when

17:05.549 --> 17:07.549
when it made sense and at all times

17:07.549 --> 17:09.771
they're wearing face coverings . And so

17:09.771 --> 17:11.938
we've seen a a dramatic drop off , but

17:11.938 --> 17:14.160
one of things that was most interesting

17:14.160 --> 17:13.970
to me that the chain chain of command

17:13.970 --> 17:17.470
raised is that by putting these

17:17.710 --> 17:20.670
practices in place for arriving and

17:20.670 --> 17:23.380
existing recruits to prevent Corona

17:23.380 --> 17:25.547
virus spread . They've also found that

17:25.547 --> 17:27.380
they prevent the spread of other

17:27.380 --> 17:29.269
respiratory tract infections . So

17:29.269 --> 17:30.991
they've seen Sick Call go down

17:30.991 --> 17:32.880
remarkably across the board , and

17:32.880 --> 17:34.658
they've seen a higher number of

17:34.658 --> 17:36.824
recruits available for training day in

17:36.824 --> 17:38.769
and day out . And I think that's a

17:38.769 --> 17:40.880
clear example Clear lesson learned of

17:40.880 --> 17:42.713
one of the things that I believe

17:42.713 --> 17:44.880
they're going to carry forward once we

17:44.880 --> 17:46.880
get beyond the krona bars as a good

17:46.880 --> 17:48.850
practice for for recruits at basic

17:48.850 --> 17:50.850
training . And they had a number of

17:50.850 --> 17:52.961
other lessons learned that I've asked

17:52.961 --> 17:54.739
him to push back up that we can

17:54.739 --> 17:56.906
incorporate and spend and share across

17:56.906 --> 17:58.850
the force across the services . So

17:58.850 --> 18:00.683
there is good coming out of this

18:00.683 --> 18:02.683
lessons learned . I think that will

18:02.683 --> 18:04.850
make us even more effective and better

18:04.850 --> 18:07.072
well into the future . And I think , uh

18:07.640 --> 18:09.751
is going to lessons learned it at all

18:09.751 --> 18:12.170
different levels , so way have toe .

18:12.180 --> 18:14.291
This is not a situation where we have

18:14.291 --> 18:16.890
one size fits all eso the key . The key

18:16.890 --> 18:18.779
lesson learned here is to empower

18:18.779 --> 18:20.920
commanders to develop their mission

18:20.920 --> 18:23.370
essential task lists and to develop

18:23.370 --> 18:25.537
appropriate training strategies within

18:25.537 --> 18:27.648
the broader guidance that we have out

18:27.648 --> 18:29.814
there with respect to cope with things

18:29.814 --> 18:32.037
like masks and social distancing and so

18:32.037 --> 18:34.037
on . So , at the individual level ,

18:34.037 --> 18:36.092
basic training , individual skills ,

18:36.092 --> 18:37.870
training in units , whether the

18:37.870 --> 18:39.759
regardless of service , there's a

18:39.759 --> 18:42.500
certain and about 60 70% of training is

18:42.500 --> 18:45.230
that a to the individual level to

18:45.230 --> 18:47.174
include leader training in various

18:47.174 --> 18:49.286
courses for non commissioned officers

18:49.286 --> 18:51.508
and officers . Thesafeside measures can

18:51.508 --> 18:53.730
be applied . The precautionary measures

18:53.730 --> 18:55.674
can be applied relatively easy for

18:55.674 --> 18:57.674
individual training . The challenge

18:57.674 --> 19:00.008
gets when you get into collective train ,

19:00.008 --> 19:02.063
how do you train a crew in a tank or

19:02.063 --> 19:04.230
crew in a bomber ? Or how do you train

19:04.230 --> 19:06.286
a sub's crew for collective training

19:06.286 --> 19:08.230
when you're automatically in close

19:08.230 --> 19:10.286
confines ? So there we have to apply

19:10.286 --> 19:12.174
some other lessons aren't such as

19:12.174 --> 19:14.230
quarantine prior to getting into the

19:14.230 --> 19:16.397
into the either the tank of the or the

19:16.397 --> 19:18.397
sub of the aircraft for X amount of

19:18.397 --> 19:20.397
days , the science is becoming more

19:20.397 --> 19:22.674
players . We go along , it started out .

19:22.674 --> 19:24.897
It may be you had to have 38 went to 21

19:24.897 --> 19:27.119
days , and then it went down to 14 days

19:27.119 --> 19:29.286
and maybe you can squeeze it out of 10

19:29.286 --> 19:31.452
days . So but there's a period of time

19:31.452 --> 19:33.397
when we need to isolate quarantine

19:33.397 --> 19:35.397
prior to getting people together in

19:35.397 --> 19:35.130
close quarters . And then you still

19:35.130 --> 19:37.352
have to wear the mask . And she left to

19:37.352 --> 19:39.241
maintain all the personal hygiene

19:39.241 --> 19:41.186
etcetera s . So there's a bunch of

19:41.186 --> 19:40.870
lessons learned for collective training .

19:40.870 --> 19:43.092
They have to get done at the crew , the

19:43.092 --> 19:45.426
bomber and the missile crew , and so on .

19:45.426 --> 19:47.426
And then , if you get into a larger

19:47.426 --> 19:49.203
scale , exercises that that's a

19:49.203 --> 19:51.203
different set of lessons that we're

19:51.203 --> 19:52.926
starting to learn . There's an

19:52.926 --> 19:55.148
opportunity here , really , to leverage

19:55.148 --> 19:57.259
virtual training , a lot of simulated

19:57.259 --> 19:59.314
training that can be done and can be

19:59.314 --> 20:01.830
done safely . And you can get a smudge

20:01.830 --> 20:04.090
vang for the bucket . You can , in many

20:04.090 --> 20:06.790
cases in terms of repetitions , out of

20:06.790 --> 20:09.012
virtual training , and you cannot alive

20:09.012 --> 20:11.179
training . So there's a lot of lessons

20:11.179 --> 20:13.401
learned we're collecting . All of those

20:13.401 --> 20:15.512
up on were disseminating very rapidly

20:15.512 --> 20:17.568
throughout all the force for all the

20:17.568 --> 20:16.780
different levels , with its leader

20:16.780 --> 20:18.613
training , collector training or

20:18.613 --> 20:20.780
individual trading . So I'll turn this

20:20.780 --> 20:22.613
next question to you is , well ,

20:22.613 --> 20:24.558
Benjamin Ridenhour , whose in Camp

20:24.558 --> 20:26.724
Perrin . John Kuwait wants to know for

20:26.724 --> 20:28.502
PCs permanent change of station

20:28.502 --> 20:30.836
locations such as Kuwait . Why can't we ?

20:30.836 --> 20:33.670
PCs units are deploying and redeploying

20:33.670 --> 20:35.850
individuals on TCS Temporary change of

20:35.850 --> 20:37.906
station and Tedy wide temporary duty

20:37.906 --> 20:40.740
travel can come and go , but if you PCs

20:40.740 --> 20:42.990
here , you can't leave , he writes .

20:42.990 --> 20:45.550
I'm going on 14 months and theater with

20:45.550 --> 20:47.439
no real date for when I can leave

20:47.720 --> 20:50.350
taking care of family as many fronts .

20:51.220 --> 20:53.380
Yeah , and I and and I appreciate his

20:53.380 --> 20:55.324
comment . I know it's a tremendous

20:55.560 --> 20:58.060
sacrifice on him , but it's for his

20:58.060 --> 21:00.840
safety and for the safety of his family .

21:00.840 --> 21:03.480
In fact , it's for the safety of all

21:03.480 --> 21:05.730
the force that we put in very , very

21:05.730 --> 21:07.897
strict travel restrictions . Now , the

21:07.897 --> 21:10.119
memo that the secretary signed out this

21:10.119 --> 21:12.063
week is gonna ease up those travel

21:12.063 --> 21:14.119
restrictions , and I believe that he

21:14.119 --> 21:16.341
will see the results of that on , and I

21:16.341 --> 21:18.286
believe the he'll probably able to

21:18.286 --> 21:20.508
piece yes here relatively shortly . But

21:20.508 --> 21:22.730
having said that , the reason he had to

21:22.730 --> 21:24.730
stay an extra two months is for the

21:24.730 --> 21:26.897
broader safety of him , his family and

21:26.897 --> 21:29.119
the force . These were necessary things

21:29.119 --> 21:31.119
to do . We , the United States have

21:31.119 --> 21:33.341
lost 100,000 people in the last four or

21:33.341 --> 21:36.040
five months . Thankfully , we the

21:36.050 --> 21:38.510
military , I have not lost those kind

21:38.510 --> 21:40.677
of numbers we have , unfortunately had

21:40.677 --> 21:42.954
three deaths on that's that's horrible ,

21:42.954 --> 21:44.899
but that's nothing compared to the

21:44.899 --> 21:47.010
nation at large . But this is for his

21:47.010 --> 21:49.066
safety and his family safety , and I

21:49.066 --> 21:48.600
know he will understand that . But

21:48.600 --> 21:50.544
these rules of being eased up here

21:50.544 --> 21:52.767
shortly , and I think he'll get his PCs

21:52.767 --> 21:55.520
sodas pretty quick . Secretary of this

21:55.520 --> 21:57.960
next question is for you . You've had

21:58.190 --> 22:00.340
reservists and National Guardsmen

22:00.430 --> 22:02.541
called up in response to Covert , and

22:02.541 --> 22:05.000
this is a two part question . The first

22:05.010 --> 22:07.770
is some reservists have orders that may

22:07.770 --> 22:10.200
last longer than the mission itself .

22:10.210 --> 22:12.950
If the mission ends first , will those

22:12.950 --> 22:15.330
orders be cut short ? And the second

22:15.330 --> 22:17.274
part of that question is , Are you

22:17.274 --> 22:19.330
supportive of National Guard members

22:19.330 --> 22:22.060
being extended ? Sure . Well , I had

22:22.060 --> 22:25.140
the virtue of speaking to this from

22:25.260 --> 22:27.260
from a number of perspectives , not

22:27.260 --> 22:29.427
just where I sit now , but as a former

22:29.427 --> 22:31.538
member of the National Guard and as a

22:31.538 --> 22:33.704
former member of the Army Reserve . So

22:33.704 --> 22:33.620
I understand the situation they're in .

22:33.960 --> 22:36.182
So here's my view on this . I think the

22:36.182 --> 22:37.904
guard and reserves have done a

22:37.904 --> 22:40.071
fantastic job out there on the streets

22:40.071 --> 22:41.849
of America . We have the 45,000

22:41.849 --> 22:44.016
guardsmen deployed . Now I think steel

22:44.016 --> 22:44.000
to all 50 states , 32 or three

22:44.000 --> 22:46.222
territories and definitely the District

22:46.222 --> 22:48.420
of Columbia . And my view remains . I

22:48.420 --> 22:50.476
said so publicly . I've communicated

22:50.476 --> 22:52.587
this throughout the inter agency that

22:52.587 --> 22:54.253
if they're in a valid mission

22:54.253 --> 22:56.570
assignment approved by FEMA , then we

22:56.570 --> 22:59.440
should certainly extend them . And the

22:59.450 --> 23:01.617
mission of Simon will dictate how long

23:01.617 --> 23:03.783
that takes a Sfar , as I'm concerned ,

23:03.783 --> 23:05.950
until mission is accomplished , if you

23:05.950 --> 23:08.450
will . But it's you can't apply a one

23:08.450 --> 23:10.672
size fits all rule to these things . As

23:10.672 --> 23:12.672
we know with regard to the National

23:12.672 --> 23:14.783
Guard . It's 50 states , 50 governors

23:14.783 --> 23:16.950
who are employing their guardsmen in a

23:16.950 --> 23:19.172
variety of tasks . Some of them are are

23:19.172 --> 23:21.339
identical across states . But some are

23:21.339 --> 23:23.394
very different , their unique to the

23:23.394 --> 23:23.240
state and the challenges each state

23:23.240 --> 23:25.462
faces . So each mission assignment , it

23:25.462 --> 23:27.684
is a little different . The scope maybe

23:27.684 --> 23:30.010
broader , broader or narrower . The

23:30.020 --> 23:31.853
number of people doing it may be

23:31.853 --> 23:33.687
different on the time . Duration

23:33.687 --> 23:35.687
certainly will change from state to

23:35.687 --> 23:37.853
state . So again I go back , Teoh . If

23:37.853 --> 23:39.909
it's a valid mission assignment , we

23:39.909 --> 23:41.909
should certainly extend it . And we

23:41.909 --> 23:44.020
should extend that mission assignment

23:44.020 --> 23:46.242
until the mission is accomplished . And

23:46.242 --> 23:48.242
if the mission ends early , Um , we

23:48.242 --> 23:50.187
gotta make sure on the back end we

23:50.187 --> 23:52.353
provide enough time for a guardsmen or

23:52.353 --> 23:54.242
reservists to do a restriction of

23:54.242 --> 23:56.242
movement , if you will , so that if

23:56.242 --> 23:55.870
they've been exposed , if they've been

23:55.870 --> 23:58.092
on the front lines and there's a chance

23:58.092 --> 24:00.259
that they've been infected or they are

24:00.259 --> 24:02.426
asymptomatic carrier , that they don't

24:02.426 --> 24:04.481
carry that back home , back to their

24:04.481 --> 24:06.648
community or back to their family , if

24:06.648 --> 24:08.870
you will . So we gotta work through the

24:08.870 --> 24:10.981
details of that . We speak every week

24:10.981 --> 24:13.092
with the National Guard Bureau . I've

24:13.092 --> 24:15.092
spoken the chairman I both multiple

24:15.092 --> 24:17.203
times with the tags of the respective

24:17.203 --> 24:19.203
states , so we're working this very

24:19.203 --> 24:21.370
closely with them . But that remit has

24:21.370 --> 24:23.592
been and remains my view with regard to

24:23.592 --> 24:25.814
extensions of mission assignments . The

24:25.814 --> 24:28.092
second is a follow up to that question .

24:28.092 --> 24:27.990
Many have speculated that this crisis

24:27.990 --> 24:30.190
will only ease up when there is a

24:30.190 --> 24:32.420
vaccine available . Can you describe

24:32.420 --> 24:34.364
how the department is working with

24:34.364 --> 24:36.198
other government agencies in the

24:36.198 --> 24:38.476
private sector on Operation Warp Speed .

24:38.476 --> 24:40.698
How confident are you that we will have

24:40.698 --> 24:42.809
a vaccine by December ? Sure . Well ,

24:42.809 --> 24:44.920
first of all , the department defense

24:44.920 --> 24:46.753
has been working on vaccines and

24:46.753 --> 24:48.587
therapeutics and diagnostics for

24:48.587 --> 24:50.642
several months now . My first trip ,

24:50.642 --> 24:53.230
when I think it was probably February ,

24:53.230 --> 24:55.174
was the Fort Dietrich , Maryland ,

24:55.174 --> 24:57.119
where we have some of world's best

24:57.119 --> 24:59.230
researchers and scientists who at the

24:59.230 --> 25:01.397
time walk me through the labs , showed

25:01.397 --> 25:03.508
me how they were beginning their work

25:03.508 --> 25:02.710
on the krona virus . They were

25:02.710 --> 25:04.377
improving our testing machine

25:04.377 --> 25:06.543
capability . And , of course , we have

25:06.543 --> 25:08.710
other great researchers at places like

25:08.710 --> 25:10.660
DARPA and Walter Reed . And so the

25:10.670 --> 25:12.837
military's been honest now for several

25:12.837 --> 25:15.003
months trying to work through vaccines

25:15.003 --> 25:17.226
and therapeutics . Now , recently , the

25:17.226 --> 25:19.448
last couple weeks , we have joined with

25:19.448 --> 25:21.670
HHS Health and Human Services Secretary

25:21.670 --> 25:23.448
Cesar and I will be co chairing

25:23.448 --> 25:25.226
Operation Warp speed . The Gulf

25:25.226 --> 25:27.700
Operation warp speed is to produce 300

25:27.700 --> 25:30.200
million doses of a vaccine by January 1

25:30.630 --> 25:34.380
2021 . We we have appointed as our

25:34.380 --> 25:36.850
co chair representative to that

25:36.850 --> 25:38.794
operation , Warp Speed General Gus

25:38.794 --> 25:40.572
Purna , who is the head of Army

25:40.572 --> 25:42.461
material command . He has a great

25:42.461 --> 25:44.350
background . I've worked with him

25:44.350 --> 25:46.294
before , as has the chairman . I'm

25:46.294 --> 25:48.350
confident he'll do a fantastic job .

25:48.350 --> 25:50.572
He's already moved up here to D . C and

25:50.572 --> 25:52.739
has taken charge of the workload . Has

25:52.739 --> 25:54.850
been a meeting with folks , and we've

25:54.850 --> 25:57.128
had two separate meetings with him now ,

25:57.128 --> 25:59.350
to make sure he has all the resource is

25:59.350 --> 26:01.350
authority and support . He needs to

26:01.350 --> 26:03.350
accomplish the task at hand and his

26:03.350 --> 26:05.572
task . The task of Operation Warp speed

26:05.572 --> 26:07.794
is to deliver at scale those vaccines ,

26:07.794 --> 26:09.906
but also they're looking at producing

26:09.906 --> 26:11.628
and supplying and distributing

26:11.628 --> 26:13.794
therapeutics and two and diagnostics .

26:14.240 --> 26:16.462
And his particular task will be to make

26:16.462 --> 26:18.462
sure we get the manufacturing up to

26:18.462 --> 26:20.407
meet that mission in time and then

26:20.407 --> 26:22.296
distributed . And so again , he's

26:22.296 --> 26:24.629
working hard at that . We have the best .

26:24.629 --> 26:26.851
Scientists and researchers in the world

26:26.851 --> 26:26.530
were parting not just within the

26:26.530 --> 26:28.641
interagency but also with the private

26:28.641 --> 26:31.000
sector . And again , I'm confident we

26:31.000 --> 26:33.720
will be able to deliver vaccine at

26:33.720 --> 26:37.620
scale in time . Its chairman . This

26:37.620 --> 26:39.800
question is for you . Lisa Rogers ,

26:39.810 --> 26:41.699
from Huntsville , Alabama , asked

26:41.699 --> 26:43.477
another question about the stop

26:43.477 --> 26:45.588
movement , she writes . Why can't the

26:45.588 --> 26:47.643
travel stop movement order be lifted

26:47.643 --> 26:49.866
with strict precautions in place , such

26:49.866 --> 26:51.977
as quarantine before and after travel

26:51.977 --> 26:53.810
facemasks , Onley using military

26:53.810 --> 26:56.032
flights , etcetera . The stock movement

26:56.032 --> 26:57.866
doesn't even allow for people to

26:57.866 --> 26:59.977
prepare for job changes , such as the

26:59.977 --> 27:02.143
ability to sell their house if they're

27:02.143 --> 27:04.366
awaiting a government move . She thinks

27:04.366 --> 27:06.366
this needs to ease up , sir , and I

27:06.366 --> 27:08.310
think she'll find when she has not

27:08.310 --> 27:10.477
going to take a look at the memorandum

27:10.477 --> 27:12.532
that Secretary signed this week that

27:12.532 --> 27:15.570
you'll see that it is easing up again .

27:15.570 --> 27:17.570
I want to reiterate as a pension to

27:17.570 --> 27:19.792
Benjamin a little earlier , Uh , that ,

27:20.070 --> 27:23.470
uh , this a situation that was new on .

27:23.470 --> 27:25.637
We are in our I guess , fourth month ,

27:25.637 --> 27:28.130
almost fifth month . Um , and there's

27:28.130 --> 27:30.660
been a lot of death pain suffering

27:31.130 --> 27:33.930
throughout the entire country . Eso the

27:33.930 --> 27:36.097
secretary in the Department of Defense

27:36.310 --> 27:38.254
took those measures that were very

27:38.254 --> 27:40.830
strict in order to protect the force

27:40.830 --> 27:43.052
and to protect the families on . And it

27:43.052 --> 27:45.460
was exactly the right thing to do . And

27:45.470 --> 27:48.320
those efforts have proven to be

27:48.320 --> 27:51.740
effective . Give look at our death

27:51.740 --> 27:54.960
rates and look at our infection rates

27:54.960 --> 27:57.530
in the military relative to society as

27:57.530 --> 28:00.020
a whole . Although they're still severe

28:00.030 --> 28:02.086
and they're still terrible for those

28:02.086 --> 28:04.197
that passed away . They're relatively

28:04.197 --> 28:06.400
low . So I appreciate what Lisa's

28:06.400 --> 28:09.100
saying . Um , and I think that the most

28:09.100 --> 28:11.156
recent memo , you're going to see an

28:11.156 --> 28:13.211
easing of those restrictions on then

28:13.211 --> 28:15.322
general officers within the chains of

28:15.322 --> 28:17.489
command do have waiver authority . And

28:17.489 --> 28:19.600
as the secretary just mentioned about

28:19.600 --> 28:22.000
vaccines , it's been said many times

28:22.000 --> 28:24.056
before by many people that were in a

28:24.056 --> 28:26.222
war in and sort of the secret weapon .

28:26.222 --> 28:29.110
Here is a vaccine , and we are very

28:29.110 --> 28:32.330
confident that a vaccine is a going to

28:32.330 --> 28:36.010
be , uh , online with numbers ,

28:36.010 --> 28:38.177
and we're gonna and it's gonna be safe

28:38.177 --> 28:40.288
and protective and effective except ,

28:40.288 --> 28:42.510
uh , but between now and then , there's

28:42.510 --> 28:44.740
some time on its at least measured in

28:44.740 --> 28:47.860
months , um , out through the 1st

28:47.860 --> 28:51.240
January . So we need to continue , uh ,

28:51.290 --> 28:52.957
you know , taking care of our

28:52.957 --> 28:55.068
appropriate precautionary measures in

28:55.068 --> 28:57.012
terms of distance hygiene , travel

28:57.012 --> 28:58.957
restrictions and a wide variety of

28:58.957 --> 29:01.179
other things . It is easing up , but we

29:01.179 --> 29:03.179
still need to be attentive to it in

29:03.179 --> 29:05.401
order to prevent any kind of resurgence

29:05.401 --> 29:07.457
and to continue to protect the force

29:07.457 --> 29:07.350
are both the troops and their families .

29:08.040 --> 29:10.151
just a pile on a little bit and say ,

29:10.151 --> 29:12.373
Look , we all share the same view where

29:12.373 --> 29:14.540
we all want to get back to normal or a

29:14.540 --> 29:16.762
new normal as soon as possible . We all

29:16.762 --> 29:18.707
been cooped up at home , and we've

29:18.707 --> 29:18.690
placed restrictions on her own movement .

29:18.700 --> 29:21.330
We practiced day in , day out , social

29:21.330 --> 29:23.730
distancing , and so and our families

29:23.730 --> 29:25.841
are filling the same thing . I have a

29:25.841 --> 29:27.952
college age daughter who's been stuck

29:27.952 --> 29:30.063
at home , away from school and cooped

29:30.063 --> 29:29.890
up with her parents for a few months .

29:29.890 --> 29:32.610
So we all face these unique situations ,

29:32.610 --> 29:34.666
and we're all anxious to get on with

29:34.666 --> 29:36.888
things as best we can as well . But you

29:36.888 --> 29:39.054
know , the chairman's right . And as C

29:39.054 --> 29:41.277
X right , it's all about protecting our

29:41.277 --> 29:43.332
force , our people , and I know it .

29:43.332 --> 29:45.332
For some , it may not . It may seem

29:45.332 --> 29:47.554
like we're being too cautious for other

29:47.554 --> 29:49.499
other folks . It seems too risky .

29:49.499 --> 29:51.721
We've also been at this for five months

29:51.721 --> 29:53.777
now . We D o . D . Has been involved

29:53.777 --> 29:55.888
since January . That's when the first

29:55.888 --> 29:55.550
guidance went out . That's when the

29:56.140 --> 29:58.307
American service members first welcome

29:58.307 --> 30:00.529
back our fellow citizens from China and

30:00.529 --> 30:02.529
helped put him at a reserve base in

30:02.529 --> 30:04.696
California . So we've been at this for

30:04.696 --> 30:06.584
five months now . It's been a lot

30:06.584 --> 30:08.696
longer for many Americans , and we've

30:08.696 --> 30:10.973
place tough restrictions on our people ,

30:10.973 --> 30:12.973
all to protect the force and all to

30:12.973 --> 30:15.196
preserve our mission readiness and were

30:15.196 --> 30:17.362
very successful . Our numbers relative

30:17.362 --> 30:17.030
to the broader population brought

30:17.040 --> 30:19.151
relative to any other population have

30:19.151 --> 30:21.480
been very good tragic for those who

30:21.480 --> 30:23.147
have lost folks who have been

30:23.147 --> 30:25.202
hospitalized . But those numbers are

30:25.202 --> 30:27.424
far , far lower because of the measures

30:27.424 --> 30:29.424
we've taken place , which is why we

30:29.424 --> 30:32.270
want to be very deliberate , phased

30:32.520 --> 30:34.798
conditions based as we lead up a swell ,

30:34.798 --> 30:36.909
because what we don't want do is risk

30:36.909 --> 30:39.076
our people . So again , we're all very

30:39.076 --> 30:41.242
conscious of these challenges that are

30:41.242 --> 30:43.298
being faced out there by friends and

30:43.298 --> 30:45.464
family and workers and colleagues . We

30:45.464 --> 30:47.631
share them as well to a large degree ,

30:47.631 --> 30:49.520
and we're is anxious is everybody

30:49.520 --> 30:51.464
else's to kind of let up and start

30:51.464 --> 30:53.631
letting the force move and do it needs

30:53.631 --> 30:55.853
to do , and we're not gonna get back to

30:55.853 --> 30:58.076
a normal . The way it was will be a new

30:58.076 --> 31:00.076
normal , if you will . Even lessons

31:00.076 --> 31:02.131
learned that we adopt from This will

31:02.131 --> 31:04.298
create a new normal in many ways , but

31:04.298 --> 31:06.520
we will get there . We've made a lot of

31:06.520 --> 31:05.870
great progress in the last four or five

31:05.870 --> 31:09.070
months . Were now I've signed out or we

31:09.070 --> 31:11.126
signed out the Pentagon a handful of

31:11.126 --> 31:13.237
memos which will begin this process ,

31:13.237 --> 31:15.348
and we will work our way through it .

31:15.348 --> 31:17.459
And I guarantee the next time that we

31:17.459 --> 31:19.459
sit down for a virtual town hall in

31:19.459 --> 31:18.930
three or four weeks will be in a

31:18.930 --> 31:21.041
different place will be further along

31:21.041 --> 31:23.160
that path , and you'll see it . The

31:23.170 --> 31:25.114
military , in retrospect , will be

31:25.114 --> 31:27.114
looking much different than what it

31:27.114 --> 31:29.750
does today . Turning now to the senior

31:29.750 --> 31:31.806
at listed advisor for the chairman ,

31:31.970 --> 31:34.650
Sean Brok Ritter See Beck of Ramstein ,

31:34.650 --> 31:36.983
Germany , has a question about vehicles .

31:37.240 --> 31:39.590
Soldiers were bussed from a I T . It's

31:39.590 --> 31:41.910
advanced individual training directly

31:41.910 --> 31:43.950
to their first duty station for

31:43.950 --> 31:46.280
Campbell and were not allowed to return

31:46.280 --> 31:48.400
to their homes to retrieve vehicles .

31:48.740 --> 31:50.907
They're being told by transportation .

31:50.907 --> 31:53.073
Their cars can't be shipped to the and

31:53.073 --> 31:55.240
they're not being allowed to take time

31:55.240 --> 31:57.407
off to go get them , she writes . This

31:57.407 --> 31:59.407
causes an undue hardship due to the

31:59.407 --> 32:01.629
mitigating circumstances of Cove it can

32:01.629 --> 32:03.907
an exception to policy be put in place .

32:03.907 --> 32:05.796
I'm pretty sure this situation is

32:05.796 --> 32:08.330
occurring all over . Thank you . No .

32:08.330 --> 32:10.497
Yes . And thank you , Sandra , for the

32:10.497 --> 32:12.719
question . And this is just yet another

32:12.719 --> 32:16.200
concern that has created some concern

32:16.200 --> 32:18.900
by our members due to the restrictions

32:18.900 --> 32:21.200
of movement . But again , going back to

32:21.200 --> 32:23.367
the risk mitigation because we need to

32:23.367 --> 32:25.900
maintain the lethality off the services

32:25.910 --> 32:27.966
and we need to conduct training . So

32:27.966 --> 32:30.077
the decision was made to go ahead and

32:30.077 --> 32:32.243
keep the healthy population that enter

32:32.243 --> 32:34.021
training to go ahead and travel

32:34.021 --> 32:36.210
together in order to mitigate the risk

32:36.300 --> 32:39.480
off getting infected . Now the follow

32:39.480 --> 32:42.140
on to that disaster restrictions ease .

32:42.240 --> 32:44.129
I can almost guarantee that those

32:44.129 --> 32:46.184
soldiers will be able to get back to

32:46.184 --> 32:48.240
their homes and get their vehicles ,

32:48.240 --> 32:50.296
but just like were preventing people

32:50.296 --> 32:53.050
from trend from transporting themselves

32:53.050 --> 32:54.883
or their families across certain

32:54.883 --> 32:57.810
borders . This is no different . And at

32:57.810 --> 32:59.866
the end of the day , we need to make

32:59.866 --> 33:01.588
sure that we continue with the

33:01.588 --> 33:03.810
throughput off our soldiers , sailors ,

33:03.810 --> 33:06.032
airmen , Marines and Coast guardsmen to

33:06.032 --> 33:07.977
be able to go ahead and affect the

33:07.977 --> 33:10.199
defense of the nation . But again , the

33:10.199 --> 33:12.143
commanders in the field are making

33:12.143 --> 33:14.366
extreme , extremely difficult decisions

33:14.366 --> 33:16.588
to ensure that they're able to maintain

33:16.588 --> 33:18.754
the greatness of their forces . But we

33:18.754 --> 33:20.699
will do our best to make sure that

33:20.699 --> 33:22.754
those soldiers get their property in

33:22.754 --> 33:25.100
due time . Mr . Chairman , with

33:25.110 --> 33:27.650
secretary is next questions both of you .

33:28.140 --> 33:30.029
Many other members wrote us about

33:30.029 --> 33:31.973
hardships , even the difficulty of

33:31.973 --> 33:33.918
doing their jobs . Lisa Burnham of

33:33.918 --> 33:36.140
Austin , Texas , asked . My husband has

33:36.140 --> 33:38.140
been quarantined twice due to being

33:38.140 --> 33:40.320
contact trace in Afghanistan . He's

33:40.320 --> 33:43.070
tested negative three times . That

33:43.070 --> 33:45.181
means he will spend more than a month

33:45.181 --> 33:47.292
of his deployment not doing his job .

33:47.630 --> 33:49.686
How is this policy sustainable ? She

33:49.686 --> 33:52.260
asked . Well , those are some of the

33:52.260 --> 33:54.538
things that we're looking at right now .

33:54.538 --> 33:56.760
What we need to do is make sure we have

33:56.760 --> 33:58.927
a higher availability rate , but we do

33:58.927 --> 34:01.093
so prudently on with the advice of our

34:01.093 --> 34:03.260
medical experts . You know , the chain

34:03.260 --> 34:02.930
of command . Generally , I , the

34:02.930 --> 34:05.041
commanders , the service chiefs , met

34:05.041 --> 34:07.440
just a couple weeks ago with spend an

34:07.440 --> 34:09.570
hour and 1/2 with doctors pfoutch Ian

34:09.570 --> 34:11.681
Birks talking about these issues . So

34:11.681 --> 34:13.920
what we're looking at now is how can we

34:14.370 --> 34:16.670
hack ? We adjust our policies and

34:16.670 --> 34:18.920
practices because one of things we've

34:18.920 --> 34:21.220
learned over the past few months is

34:21.220 --> 34:23.820
that we have , ah , generally a younger ,

34:23.960 --> 34:26.290
healthier , healthier , fitter force

34:26.710 --> 34:29.890
that is able to withstand the Corona

34:29.890 --> 34:32.500
virus . If anything , they become

34:32.870 --> 34:35.037
asymptomatic carriers , which presents

34:35.037 --> 34:37.037
its own challenges but for the most

34:37.037 --> 34:38.981
part , aren't people are generally

34:38.981 --> 34:41.092
being not affected or , if affected ,

34:41.092 --> 34:43.092
affected mildly . That's why if you

34:43.092 --> 34:45.092
look at our numbers again now , the

34:45.092 --> 34:47.314
active duty force , you know one is too

34:47.314 --> 34:49.481
many . But we've only lost one service

34:49.481 --> 34:51.703
member , active duty service member out

34:51.703 --> 34:53.648
of a 1,000,000 plus because of the

34:53.648 --> 34:55.481
demographics of our population ,

34:55.481 --> 34:57.592
because of all the measures we put in

34:57.592 --> 34:59.814
place because of the preventive actions

34:59.814 --> 35:01.981
we've taken . So what we're looking at

35:01.981 --> 35:04.060
now or how do we adapt ? How do we

35:04.060 --> 35:06.004
adapt our practices and procedures

35:06.004 --> 35:08.116
based on our further understanding of

35:08.116 --> 35:10.970
the virus and the impact it has on our

35:10.970 --> 35:12.970
various populations ? That's one of

35:12.970 --> 35:15.450
things that was that we was recommended

35:15.450 --> 35:17.970
by doctors . Foulke and Berks is for us

35:17.970 --> 35:20.130
to consider reducing our quarantine

35:20.130 --> 35:22.241
times , for example , from 14 days to

35:22.241 --> 35:25.060
10 days because the risk level is

35:25.070 --> 35:28.230
is not that much higher between those

35:28.310 --> 35:30.366
two time months for our population .

35:30.960 --> 35:33.127
Military population . So that's one of

35:33.127 --> 35:35.127
things we're looking at in terms of

35:35.127 --> 35:37.182
adjusting the timelines on . And now

35:37.182 --> 35:39.071
that we have an increased testing

35:39.071 --> 35:41.238
availability , making sure we're doing

35:41.238 --> 35:43.349
that . But testing isn't a be all end

35:43.349 --> 35:45.516
all there are a number of other things

35:45.516 --> 35:45.330
that we're looking at . Teoh . Make

35:45.330 --> 35:47.460
sure we did because , like like the

35:47.460 --> 35:49.571
person who wrote in , we want to make

35:49.571 --> 35:51.349
sure that we aren't keeping are

35:51.349 --> 35:53.460
deployed service members cooped up in

35:53.460 --> 35:53.210
quarantine all the time . We want them

35:53.210 --> 35:55.099
to be out there doing their job ,

35:55.099 --> 35:57.154
exercising the skills . But priority

35:57.154 --> 35:58.877
number one still comes back to

35:58.877 --> 36:00.877
protecting the force protecting the

36:00.877 --> 36:03.280
individual . And I would say police

36:03.280 --> 36:05.760
said that first , uh , it's good that

36:05.760 --> 36:08.470
your husband tested negative three

36:08.470 --> 36:10.920
times . And yes , there was a sacrifice

36:10.920 --> 36:13.550
there in terms of his one month of his

36:13.550 --> 36:15.439
deployment has been wrapped up in

36:15.439 --> 36:17.439
quarantine and testing and so on so

36:17.439 --> 36:19.272
forth . But again go back to the

36:19.272 --> 36:21.494
purpose . The purpose is to protect the

36:21.494 --> 36:23.717
force because none of us are any good .

36:23.717 --> 36:25.661
If we're were laid up in Sicko are

36:25.661 --> 36:27.383
really , really badly ill on a

36:27.383 --> 36:29.550
ventilator or worse if we pass away so

36:29.550 --> 36:31.550
we can't do our job before in those

36:31.550 --> 36:33.550
conditions . So these are necessary

36:33.550 --> 36:35.606
protective measures that we're doing

36:35.606 --> 36:37.772
throughout the force we're learning as

36:37.772 --> 36:39.717
we go . As the secretary said , we

36:39.717 --> 36:41.870
started out with possible quarantines

36:41.870 --> 36:44.260
of 21 days and now then went down to 14

36:44.260 --> 36:46.371
days and we're looking very seriously

36:46.371 --> 36:48.427
at reducing it again to 10 days . We

36:48.427 --> 36:50.427
know the incubation period for this

36:50.427 --> 36:54.050
particular virus . On on average is

36:54.050 --> 36:56.660
something like five point six days . So

36:56.660 --> 36:58.660
somewhere in the 5 to 6 days is the

36:58.660 --> 37:01.120
normal incubation period . Eso If you

37:01.120 --> 37:03.690
isolate for 10 you're going to get 98

37:03.690 --> 37:07.600
99% perhaps probability that if the

37:07.600 --> 37:09.600
person tests negative at the end of

37:09.600 --> 37:11.767
that , then they don't have it s so it

37:11.767 --> 37:13.822
comes down to a function of risk and

37:13.822 --> 37:15.933
protect the force It again . How long

37:15.933 --> 37:18.100
is she said ? Is it sustainable ? That

37:18.100 --> 37:20.470
depends way . We don't know how long

37:20.470 --> 37:22.359
this will last with any degree of

37:22.359 --> 37:24.581
certainty . We're very confident that a

37:24.581 --> 37:27.440
vaccine will be online sometime

37:27.440 --> 37:29.607
beginning in the fall , and we'll have

37:29.607 --> 37:31.773
up . The goal is to have upward of 300

37:31.773 --> 37:33.996
million doses by the first of January .

37:33.996 --> 37:35.884
If that happens in this very high

37:35.884 --> 37:38.107
confidence levels that it will happen ,

37:38.107 --> 37:40.162
then we will be able to immunize the

37:40.162 --> 37:41.884
military and will immunize the

37:41.884 --> 37:44.107
population at large on Then we will see

37:44.107 --> 37:46.162
a very , very rapid decrease in this

37:46.162 --> 37:48.218
disease throughout the country . And

37:48.218 --> 37:50.218
then I think we'll get back to more

37:50.218 --> 37:52.384
normal conditions , so we'll see . But

37:52.384 --> 37:55.650
for right now , we are sustaining these

37:55.660 --> 37:57.493
levels of protection in order to

37:57.493 --> 37:59.549
protect the force and protect family

37:59.549 --> 38:01.827
members , and will continue to do that .

38:01.920 --> 38:03.920
Turn to the SEAQ for this follow up

38:03.920 --> 38:05.976
question . Along those lines , we've

38:05.976 --> 38:07.698
had several anonymous comments

38:07.698 --> 38:09.864
submitted about their struggles during

38:09.864 --> 38:11.642
this period . Quote . It's been

38:11.642 --> 38:13.809
overwhelming being at home for so long

38:13.809 --> 38:15.864
by myself . Another said , I love my

38:15.864 --> 38:18.031
Children and my spouse , but having my

38:18.031 --> 38:20.253
spouse deployed to me working full time

38:20.253 --> 38:22.420
in my job while doing full time online

38:22.420 --> 38:24.253
schooling and parenting has been

38:24.253 --> 38:26.364
incredibly overwhelming . What's your

38:26.364 --> 38:28.142
advice for these members of our

38:28.142 --> 38:30.690
military family ? And first of all ,

38:30.690 --> 38:32.634
for those who are listening on the

38:32.634 --> 38:34.990
United most comments is that taking

38:34.990 --> 38:37.390
care of our family and service members

38:37.390 --> 38:39.430
is our top priority . But we also

38:39.430 --> 38:41.597
encourage you to use . The resource is

38:41.597 --> 38:43.819
at hand , and the Department of Defense

38:43.819 --> 38:45.986
has got numerous resources to help you

38:45.986 --> 38:48.041
with many issues , from chaplains to

38:48.041 --> 38:50.319
medical professionals to mental health .

38:50.319 --> 38:52.550
Military one sores service specific

38:52.550 --> 38:54.620
family readiness programs are all

38:54.630 --> 38:56.840
available for you . All we need to do

38:56.840 --> 38:59.007
is see their pick up the phone or talk

38:59.007 --> 39:01.007
to somebody to go ahead and get the

39:01.007 --> 39:03.229
help we need . And that is the key part

39:03.229 --> 39:05.284
on the best advice that I can give .

39:05.284 --> 39:07.340
You stay in close communication with

39:07.340 --> 39:09.520
the people that can get you help . All

39:09.520 --> 39:12.790
right , do not just a silence silent

39:12.790 --> 39:14.840
out of pride just because you think

39:14.840 --> 39:16.784
you're too strong . These are hard

39:16.784 --> 39:18.840
times not just for the Department of

39:18.840 --> 39:21.062
Defense but for the nation writ large .

39:21.062 --> 39:23.173
So please utilize the mechanisms that

39:23.173 --> 39:25.229
we have in place , not just like the

39:25.229 --> 39:27.451
foot stump with , Seaq said . And we're

39:27.451 --> 39:29.118
seeing this now . It's in the

39:29.118 --> 39:31.229
literature . It's being reported upon

39:31.229 --> 39:33.007
that , you know , all of us are

39:33.007 --> 39:35.229
exercising good physical , distancing ,

39:35.229 --> 39:37.451
social distancing . But that means that

39:37.451 --> 39:39.784
you can't let your social networks fell .

39:39.784 --> 39:42.007
In fact , this is a time to re energize

39:42.007 --> 39:44.118
your social networks . And that means

39:44.118 --> 39:46.284
reaching out to people reaching out to

39:46.284 --> 39:45.900
friends , particularly . Those are in a

39:45.910 --> 39:48.310
tough situation , Aziz you mentioned ,

39:48.310 --> 39:50.366
or others who are , you know , maybe

39:50.366 --> 39:52.366
single individuals who don't have a

39:52.366 --> 39:54.421
network within the home to help them

39:54.421 --> 39:56.588
out . So I think it's this the time to

39:56.588 --> 39:58.810
double down and re energize your social

39:58.810 --> 39:58.110
network . Stay in touch , whether it's

39:58.110 --> 40:01.890
text or phone or even , you know ,

40:01.890 --> 40:04.610
having a family come over and visit . I

40:04.620 --> 40:06.787
have sons who come over and we have to

40:06.787 --> 40:08.898
sit on the back porch . I don't allow

40:08.898 --> 40:11.064
them in the house , and we we talk and

40:11.064 --> 40:12.842
catch up a physically distant ,

40:12.842 --> 40:15.064
socially distance with face masks . But

40:15.064 --> 40:17.231
you gotta work . You gotta work hard a

40:17.231 --> 40:19.287
little bit harder these days to keep

40:19.287 --> 40:19.090
those special social networks and

40:19.090 --> 40:21.560
contacts up . As the SEAQ said , We

40:21.570 --> 40:23.737
certainly have a degree of resource is

40:23.737 --> 40:26.560
on base whether it's , you know , the

40:26.570 --> 40:28.681
mental health providers we have . But

40:28.681 --> 40:30.903
there's also the chain of command . The

40:30.903 --> 40:33.014
chain of command has a responsibility

40:33.014 --> 40:32.560
here from the officers and certainly

40:32.560 --> 40:34.727
through the CEOs to stay in touch with

40:34.727 --> 40:36.727
their soldiers , sailors , airmen ,

40:36.727 --> 40:38.838
Marines and make sure that they don't

40:38.838 --> 40:40.893
get lost in the shuffle to make sure

40:40.893 --> 40:40.880
that they remain engaged , because

40:41.130 --> 40:43.241
that's very important these days , as

40:43.241 --> 40:45.130
we as we do , physical and social

40:45.130 --> 40:47.186
distancing is to keep those networks

40:47.186 --> 40:49.352
alive and well . So this next question

40:49.352 --> 40:51.519
is for you . Mandy Ryan Hudson asked .

40:51.519 --> 40:53.741
What avenues do service members have to

40:53.741 --> 40:55.830
appeal ? A denial to an exception to

40:55.830 --> 40:58.280
policy hardships are being ignored .

40:58.290 --> 41:00.401
Earnest monies , renters deposits and

41:00.401 --> 41:02.679
mawr putting families into a real bind .

41:03.510 --> 41:05.343
Well , you know the first always

41:05.343 --> 41:07.566
reapply the chain of command there is .

41:07.566 --> 41:09.566
There is no limit on reapplying for

41:09.566 --> 41:11.566
exception to policy circumstances .

41:11.566 --> 41:13.788
Change may be your own . Or maybe , you

41:13.788 --> 41:15.899
know , as we understand the virus and

41:15.899 --> 41:17.732
we understand the effects on the

41:17.732 --> 41:17.610
community . It may give the commander

41:17.610 --> 41:19.777
of different perspective if you will ,

41:19.880 --> 41:22.020
but I think I'm confident that all

41:22.020 --> 41:24.076
commanders or care they're doing the

41:24.076 --> 41:26.242
right thing . We've we've We've opened

41:26.242 --> 41:28.353
up three categories of as I recall of

41:28.353 --> 41:30.520
waiver approval under which folks make

41:30.520 --> 41:32.700
qualified . Many people have qualified

41:32.700 --> 41:34.811
into those waivers and are conducting

41:34.811 --> 41:36.644
moves and what not , but I would

41:36.644 --> 41:38.756
encourage her to re apply in her case

41:38.756 --> 41:41.370
if she wants feel free Teoh to send us

41:41.380 --> 41:43.830
another email back with details of your

41:43.830 --> 41:46.108
case , and I'll make sure , personally ,

41:46.108 --> 41:48.330
that it gets to the appropriate service

41:48.330 --> 41:50.219
chief . And at least we give it a

41:50.219 --> 41:52.219
second look up here is well to make

41:52.219 --> 41:54.330
sure that you know that all the right

41:54.330 --> 41:54.110
eyeballs were looking at your case and

41:54.360 --> 41:56.527
and you have least have some degree of

41:56.527 --> 41:58.638
confidence that the folks there given

41:58.638 --> 42:02.120
your case a fair hearing . Mandy , you

42:02.120 --> 42:05.060
can instant message or us on Facebook

42:05.070 --> 42:08.080
to send us your email . Um , the next

42:08.080 --> 42:10.590
question is for the chairman . The last

42:10.590 --> 42:12.850
question of the day is one that was

42:12.850 --> 42:15.750
submitted several times . More than

42:15.750 --> 42:18.410
60,000 service members have deployed in

42:18.410 --> 42:21.040
response to Kobe 19 . Many at great

42:21.050 --> 42:23.480
personal risk . Is there discussion of

42:23.480 --> 42:26.010
hazardous duty pay or other recognition

42:26.130 --> 42:28.470
for those members ? There is very

42:28.470 --> 42:31.330
active discussion , and the SEAQ and

42:31.330 --> 42:33.330
all of the senior enlisted t to the

42:33.330 --> 42:36.110
services of their working in a working

42:36.110 --> 42:38.221
group to determine what the rules are

42:38.221 --> 42:40.443
gonna be on all of that they're working

42:40.443 --> 42:42.630
with always DP and are , which is the

42:42.630 --> 42:45.830
personnel and readiness secretary on .

42:45.830 --> 42:47.886
Then , once we come up with a policy

42:47.886 --> 42:49.719
under which I would expect we'll

42:49.719 --> 42:51.886
probably have that through the various

42:51.886 --> 42:53.774
development processes here in the

42:53.774 --> 42:55.941
Pentagon within the next 30 days . And

42:55.941 --> 42:57.719
I expect that will put out some

42:57.719 --> 42:59.886
guidance that will be definitive under

42:59.886 --> 43:02.052
the secretary of signature . For those

43:02.052 --> 43:04.219
that but has its duty pay about awards

43:04.219 --> 43:06.330
about unit awards , individual awards

43:06.330 --> 43:08.330
except all of that kind of stuff is

43:08.330 --> 43:11.120
absolutely under consideration on DWI

43:11.120 --> 43:13.920
will recognize those appropriately in

43:13.920 --> 43:15.976
due course , but I would expect some

43:15.976 --> 43:18.198
guidance to come out here shortly as we

43:18.198 --> 43:20.364
drop to the conclusion of today's town

43:20.364 --> 43:22.587
hall . We have time for closing remarks

43:22.587 --> 43:25.240
turned over to the CIA . No again ,

43:25.250 --> 43:27.361
things for everyone tuning in and for

43:27.361 --> 43:29.417
the questions that have been brought

43:29.417 --> 43:31.639
forward again . You are a key factor in

43:31.639 --> 43:33.560
how we make decisions here at the

43:33.560 --> 43:35.838
Pentagon for the Department of Defense .

43:35.838 --> 43:38.004
But I would like to close by reminding

43:38.004 --> 43:40.227
everyone that the nation is feeling the

43:40.227 --> 43:42.338
pain on this pandemic plainly put not

43:42.338 --> 43:44.504
just the department . One thing that I

43:44.504 --> 43:46.616
would like to remind everyone serving

43:46.616 --> 43:48.616
in the Department of Fans cyst that

43:48.616 --> 43:50.338
we're still employed , we have

43:50.338 --> 43:52.060
healthcare and we have engaged

43:52.060 --> 43:54.116
leadership to get after the issues .

43:54.116 --> 43:56.227
That is not the same for the civilian

43:56.227 --> 43:55.940
population of the United States of

43:55.940 --> 43:59.440
America . So the deal these taken every

43:59.440 --> 44:01.850
step possible to make sure that we have

44:01.850 --> 44:04.480
you focused to make sure that we have

44:04.490 --> 44:07.190
the most lethal force in the work . So

44:07.190 --> 44:09.580
please keep the feedback comments so

44:09.580 --> 44:11.747
that we can continue to work for you .

44:11.747 --> 44:13.691
And at the end of the day , always

44:13.691 --> 44:15.580
remember that we have the watch .

44:15.580 --> 44:17.780
Nobody else does , remain flexible and

44:17.780 --> 44:19.836
remain adaptable . And thank you for

44:19.836 --> 44:21.836
everything that you're doing . Mr .

44:21.836 --> 44:24.002
Chairman , I would just leave with two

44:24.002 --> 44:26.870
thoughts . One is protect the force .

44:26.880 --> 44:29.102
Continue to protect yourselves for your

44:29.102 --> 44:31.213
families because we can't protect the

44:31.213 --> 44:33.436
American people if we ourselves are not

44:33.436 --> 44:35.713
healthy , so continue to focus on that .

44:35.713 --> 44:37.713
And secondly , is our mission . The

44:37.713 --> 44:39.936
world is a big world . There's a lot of

44:39.936 --> 44:41.602
things out there that are not

44:41.602 --> 44:43.436
necessarily in the United States

44:43.436 --> 44:45.602
interests that happen every single day

44:45.602 --> 44:45.300
from terrorists or Russia to China toe

44:45.530 --> 44:47.641
Iran and North Korea and all kinds of

44:47.641 --> 44:49.752
other threats and challenges that are

44:49.752 --> 44:51.919
out there on we after operate within a

44:51.919 --> 44:54.141
cove in 19 environment we're doing that

44:54.141 --> 44:56.363
were doing that effectively right now ,

44:56.363 --> 44:58.474
so keep your eye on the ball . Stay .

44:58.474 --> 45:00.641
Stay attuned to readiness . Let's keep

45:00.641 --> 45:03.230
your operational skills up to speed on ,

45:03.230 --> 45:05.119
then protect yourself . Protect .

45:05.119 --> 45:07.174
Protect your family . Him will be in

45:07.174 --> 45:09.397
good shape . Mr . Secretary , you leave

45:09.397 --> 45:11.730
it to you to close us out today . Straw .

45:11.730 --> 45:13.841
Just , you know , reiterate upfront .

45:13.841 --> 45:13.610
Again . The priorities and number one

45:13.610 --> 45:15.730
is again party , nimble and take care

45:15.730 --> 45:17.630
of our service Members are duty ,

45:17.630 --> 45:20.140
civilians and their families . And and

45:20.140 --> 45:22.251
I appreciate it what everybody's been

45:22.251 --> 45:24.251
doing on that front . To follow the

45:24.251 --> 45:26.529
guidance to comply with the memorandum .

45:26.529 --> 45:28.584
Who sent out the policies that we've

45:28.584 --> 45:30.418
stated , And I really appreciate

45:30.418 --> 45:32.584
everybody's hard work and sacrifice of

45:32.584 --> 45:34.696
doing that . I would ask you again to

45:34.696 --> 45:34.340
take care of one another during these

45:34.400 --> 45:36.456
these days is challenging , but take

45:36.456 --> 45:38.511
take care of one another . Watch out

45:38.511 --> 45:40.622
for one another , and that's that's ,

45:40.622 --> 45:42.622
of course , a responsibility . It's

45:42.622 --> 45:44.789
incumbent upon the chain of command to

45:44.789 --> 45:44.580
do so and then . Secondly , keep in

45:44.580 --> 45:46.691
mind . Priority number two is we have

45:46.691 --> 45:48.580
to maintain our national security

45:48.580 --> 45:50.747
mission capabilities . The country has

45:50.747 --> 45:52.802
been focused inward for the last few

45:52.802 --> 45:54.969
months . It's our job to look not only

45:54.969 --> 45:56.747
inward and support the whole of

45:56.747 --> 45:56.300
government effort , which is part of

45:56.300 --> 45:58.860
number three , but also we're the ones

45:58.860 --> 46:00.860
standing on the walls were watching

46:00.860 --> 46:02.749
outward , were remaining vigilant

46:02.749 --> 46:04.860
because the world remains a dangerous

46:04.860 --> 46:06.971
place and folks out there are testing

46:06.971 --> 46:09.138
us . And so it's our duty to make sure

46:09.138 --> 46:11.304
we keep the nation well protected that

46:11.304 --> 46:13.527
are deployed and deploying . Forces are

46:13.527 --> 46:13.350
taking care of and ready to do their

46:13.350 --> 46:16.590
job . And so that's why I just deeply

46:16.590 --> 46:18.812
appreciative of everybody service . And

46:18.812 --> 46:21.034
I'm very proud of what we as a military

46:21.034 --> 46:23.201
force are doing it . So I just want to

46:23.201 --> 46:25.201
thank everybody very much again for

46:25.201 --> 46:27.423
your service , for your sacrifice , and

46:27.423 --> 46:27.090
we will get through this and we will

46:27.090 --> 46:29.140
get through this stronger than ever

46:29.140 --> 46:31.710
before . So thank you . This concludes

46:31.720 --> 46:33.609
today's town hall . Thank you for

46:33.609 --> 46:35.331
tuning in and please keep your

46:35.331 --> 46:37.498
questions coming . As you can see , we

46:37.498 --> 46:39.776
have leadership willing to answer them .

46:39.776 --> 46:40.430
Thank you . Thank you .