Gillibrand: McCain Is Wrong About Sexual Assaults in the Military

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) thinks the responsibility for sexual assault investigations in the military should be handed over to an independent commission, not military commanders.

And she isn’t afraid to call out congressmen who feel differently, like Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.).

McCain, who spent five and a half years as a prison of war in North Vietnam, opposes a Gillibrand-sponsored amendment that would revamp the way the military handles rape cases.

“I respect Sen. McCain and we are friends, but with all due respect to him, he was wrong about Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, and he was wrong about sexual assault in the military,” Gillibrand said Wednesday on “AMERICA with Jorge Ramos.”

“Our job as members of Congress is to provide that oversight and accountability over the military, over the Department of Defense,” she continued. “And there is a growing chorus of military leaders who have even more experience than Sen. McCain who are saying, ‘This should be taken out of the chain of command.’”

Watch “AMERICA with Jorge Ramos” Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET for the full interview.

Ted Hesson was formerly the immigration editor at Fusion, covering the issue from Washington, D.C. He also writes about drug laws and (occasionally) baseball. On the side: guitars, urban biking, and fiction.