“Sen. Paul believes that the vast majority of our service members are honorable and upstanding individuals,” said Paul spokesman Moira Bagley said in an email. “In the instance when one is accused of a serious crime, especially one of harassment or assault, the allegation needs to be taken seriously and conflicts of interest should not impact whether a crime is prosecuted properly.”
Paul has been a critic of the Pentagon on other issues, too. The Kentucky Republican has called for an audit of military spending and he waded into defense issues in March with a 13-hour filibuster questioning the danger of drone strikes to U.S. citizens on American soil.
Cruz on Tuesday will also go a step beyond an initial committee vote, pointing to America’s allies to explain his position.
“Several of our strongest allies such as Israel, the United Kingdom, and Germany have made similar reforms to their military justice systems, and seen marked improvement,” Cruz said in the statement. He also commended Gillibrand for her efforts to “modernize” the forces.
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