U.S. Senators Todd Young (R-Ind.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), along with Senators Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Doug Jones (D-Ala.), and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) sent a letter to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) conferees urging them to save the Chief Management Officer (CMO) position which is tasked with reforming the Department of Defense (DoD) to improve performance and increase accountability. The letter was also signed by Representatives Filemon Vela (D-Texas-34), Gary Palmer (R-Ala.-66), Jim Baird (R-Ind.-4), Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.-5), and Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.-2).
The CMO position is currently held by Indiana’s Lisa Hershman. Hershman is the senior ranking woman at DoD. Despite proving to be highly effective in the role and identifying significant taxpayer savings, her position is being targeted for elimination. Senator Young also introduced an amendment to preserve the CMO position, but it was not included in the Senate-passed NDAA.
