Senator Clinton: Thank you Mr. Chairman and thanks to you General Casey for your years of service and thanks also to your family because they have served along with you and we’re grateful to all of you.

I want to follow up on the line of questioning Senator Inhofe was perusing because I have been concerned about the readiness level of units being deployed to Iraq. And in last year’s Defense Authorization Bill, I authored an amendment that was included in the final bill that would require the Government Accountability Office to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the readiness of our ground forces within the Army and Marine Corps., no later than June 1 of this year.

But even before that report is completed there have been a series of disturbing reports that our troops don’t have the equipment they need as they are being deployed to Iraq. At a January 23 House Armed Service Committee Hearing, General Schoomaker stated, “We are in a dangerous, uncertain, and unpredictable time.” And reiterated his concerns about the readiness levels of non-deployed combat units. Five combat brigade teams are deploying to Iraq to support the proposed escalation of U.S. forces there. These units are part of the pool of non-deployed combat units.

And General, I want to ask a series of questions that follow-up on our conversation yesterday in my office because I know this is a grave concern to you and to all of us. Are you, at this point, able to assert with a one hundred percent level of confidence to this committee that every soldier being deployed to Iraq, as part of this escalation, will have all the necessary personal equipment?

General Casey: Senator, that is my goal and I know that’s General Pete Schoomaker’s goal. And we work very hard to ensure that happens.

Senator Clinton:: Can you similarly ensure us that every soldier being deployed, as part of this escalation will receive all the necessary training for this dangerous assignment?

General Casey: Again, that is the objective that both General Schoomaker and I have stated to our organizations.

Senator Clinton: And finally will each and every soldier being deployed as part of this escalation have all the necessary force protection available to them to perform their mission?

General Casey: And as I mention to you yesterday, I gave that guidance several weeks ago that would in fact be the case.

Senator Clinton: Now, according to yesterday’s Business Week summary of a new Department of Defense Inspector General report, the Inspector General is concerned that the U.S. military has failed to adequately equip soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan, especially for non-traditional duties, such as training Iraqi security forces and handling detainees. The equipment shortages were attributed to basic management failures among military commanders in Iraq and Afghanistan. U.S. central command lacked policies for requesting and tracking equipment requirements for units to perform their duties. General, have you seen this Inspector General’s report?

General Casey: I have not Senator.

Senator Clinton: Mr. Chairman, I would like to ask that the committee request a copy of the Inspector General’s report that was referred to in the Business Week story and that it be made available to the committee as soon as possible.

Chairman: It will be requested and will be shared with everybody.

Senator Clinton: General, as Commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, were you aware of the Inspector General’s investigation?

General Casey: Now this is the SIGURr’s report?

Senator Clinton:Yes.

General Casey: I am aware of a continuing Inspector General process going on. I wasn’t aware of this specific investigation. I know they’re out there all the time doing a range of investigations.

Senator Clinton: Do you know if any member of your command cooperated with this particular report?

General Casey: I don’t, but I assume they do because they routinely work with the Seger’s in doing their reports.

Senator Clinton: Could you report back to the committee what you find about the level of cooperation with this report, please?

General Casey: I will Senator.

Senator Clinton: Thank you. Are you aware of the problems that are apparently cited in this report as set forth in press counts of it?

General Casey: I’m not and I’m actually a little surprised. I think you said that was equipping of transition teams and I’ve spent a lot of personal time making sure that these teams have the best equipment because they operate relatively independently and we have gone to great lengths to make sure they have the equipment and I go up and talk to each group as they come through and I’ve not heard any mention of the transition teams being short changed on equipment.

Chairman: Senator Clinton, if I could just interrupt. We did receive the IG report that you referred to, apparently last night and it is now in our files. Its classified secret, so when you read it, if there are parts of it you feel should be declassified we’ll make those requests. Sorry for the interruption.

Senator Clinton: No, I would appreciate that Mr. Chairman because earlier this week I questioned Admiral Fallon about an article in the Washington Post titled, “Equipment for Added Troops Is Lacking, New Iraq Forces Must Make Do, Officials Say.” Mr. Chairman I’d like that article to become a part of the record of this hearing as well.

Chairman: It will be part of the record.

Senator Clinton: And after the hearing, the Chairman and ranking member sent a letter to Secretary Gates asking about the readiness of our troops. In that article were very specific and disturbing quotes from Lt. General Speakes and others about the lack of equipment, the lack of readiness. And among the concerns were the proper levels of armor for vehicles; preposition sets issued in Kuwait are the add-on armor type and do not provide adequate protection; insufficient add-on armor kits for logistic trucks and prime movers; insufficient and incomplete electronic counter-measure devises designed to defeat IEDs; insufficient force protection materials for the outposts we are building in Bagdad and throughout Anbar province; insufficient training sets in vehicles at home station for units to train on and preparation for deployments. And I’m very concerned that we are pursuing a policy that, regardless of what one thinks about it or how one evaluates its chances for success, certainly raises the fears that so many of our young men and women are going to be put into very dangerous situations in neighborhoods in Bagdad, dependent upon their Iraqi counterparts who may or may not be reliable.

And Mr. Chairman, I believe that because of these disturbing reports of equipment shortages, we should, as we begin to debate the Warner-Levin proposal, include provisions that require that adequate equipment and training be mandated so that we do not send any young American into this dangerous mission without knowing that they are as well prepared, as ready and equipped as they deserve to be to try and fulfill this mission.

General Casey: I don’t think anyone feels stronger about that then I do, Senator.

Senator Clinton: Thank you General.