Office of U.S. Senator Deb Fischer
U.S. Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) joined FOX Report with Jon Scott. She discussed the confirmation of President Trump’s Cabinet nominees and emphasized the importance of strengthening America’s nuclear deterrent. Senator Fischer also celebrated the recent confirmation of Pete Hegseth as Secretary of Defense and former South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem as Secretary of Homeland Security.
During the interview, Senator Fischer highlighted the dangers posed by Democrats’ slow confirmation of Cabinet nominees, particularly those related to national security.
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On Pete Hegseth’s Confirmation:
Jon Scott: Nebraska Senator Deb Fisher, a member of the Armed Services Committee, the Appropriations and Commerce Committees as well. So, you’re going to be a very busy Senator in this upcoming term, Senator Fischer.
First of all, let’s talk about the Hegseth nomination. He was even described by the Vice President as 90% dead early in the confirmation process, but he squeaked across the line with a tie-breaking vote by the Vice President. Give us your assessment.
Senator Fischer: Well, obviously the Secretary of Defense is an extremely important position in any administration. You know, this is one that should have been filled right away, and instead, the Democrats were doing a smear campaign trying to delay it as much as possible.
So, I was really, really happy that we were able to get Pete across the line last night. I was honored to attend his swearing-in earlier this morning at the Executive Office Building where he had his family, and a number of us from the Armed Services Committee were there for that. He’s going to do a great job. He showed that during his hearing. He had a good, solid hearing. I’ve had numerous conversations with him. I reviewed the materials that were out there. And this is the guy for the job who’s going to take care of our warriors. And he’s going to work to provide them with the resources they need so they can complete the missions they’re given.
On Preparing America’s Warfighters:
Jon Scott: Well, it’s going to be his job to reform the Pentagon, but obviously you and the Senate, on the Armed Services Committee, are going to have a big voice in that. What do you see as the reforms that this Pentagon needs?
Senator Fischer: Well, you know, we’ve had a number of discussions on that. The new Secretary has been very open about what he’s looking at. We have to look at recruitment and retention in our all-volunteer force. We have to make sure that we take care of the warfighters, that we have their backs. We need to train them so they have the proper readiness and training and can take on any situation. We need to make sure that we have a strong deterrent so that we don’t always have to send our military men and women into harm’s way.
Those are all things that the new Secretary has talked about. We’ve talked about working with him on that to be able to get those things done. You know, on Armed Services, I’m starting my 13th year on Armed Services Committee. Many of these issues come up over and over again. And I am hopeful that we have the commitment from the Secretary, we have the enthusiasm, we have the dedication to our warfighters from this man to get this done.
On Returning to Peace Through Strength:
Jon Scott: Peace through strength, is a mantra that President Trump and Pete Hegseth have repeated over and over again. They want a military that is lethal and ready to move, but lethal enough that it’s going to deter our enemies. Do you see that happening? I mean, do you see us in that situation, early in the Trump term?
Senator Fischer: You know, I’m really excited that the President and the new Secretary have embraced that Reagan term. You know, peace through strength. The Secretary and I, we talked about the priority for our nuclear deterrent, our nuclear triad, that is the bedrock of our entire national security.
It’s for ourselves, but also for our allies. They depend upon our nuclear umbrella as well. So, we’re going through a modernization program of all three legs of that triad. And in my conversations with the Secretary, we have really, really focused on the need to stay up on schedule, on all three of those legs. And make sure we have not just the weapons needed, but that those platforms are all ready to go too. We cannot afford to fall behind on this. That is true deterrence, and it’s deterrence to be able to show the strength, to show the commitment. And I think we have this administration now that has stepped up, and they are going to do that.
On the Dangers posed by Democrats’ Slow Confirmation of Cabinet Nominees:
Jon Scott: Former South Dakota Governor Christie Noem has been voted, confirmed to be Homeland Security Secretary. She may be taking the oath of office any minute now, and if she does, we’ll take our viewers there live, but give us your take on the pace of these confirmations.
Senator Fischer: Well, they’re slow, you know, this is really disappointing, but it’s also very dangerous that the Democrats are slow walking these nominations, especially these nominations that deal with our national security.
Secretary Noem when she is sworn in in a little bit, my neighbor to the north there is Governor Noem in South Dakota. She also is ready to start from day one. She’s going to be there, working with our border patrol, our other folks there on the southern border especially. And we’ve seen President Trump with his executive orders, step up right away, whether it’s with border chaos, whether it’s dealing with inflation prices out there, whether it’s dealing with our energy security, whether it’s dealing with our total national security package. So, we’re excited that she’s going to be sworn in here shortly.