Gillibrand: Some Commanders Can’t Distinguish Between A ‘Slap On The Ass And A Rape’ (VIDEO)

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Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) argued forcefully on Tuesday that the decision to prosecute sexual assaults in the military should be left up to prosecutors, not military commanders.

Gillibrand called on members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who were testifying on sexual abuse in the military before the Senate Armed Services Committee, to follow the lead of American allies.

“What several of us are asserting and arguing today is we think you should do what other countries around the world who we fight with every day, they’re our allies, they’re side-by-side with us in combat — Israel, the U.K., Australia, Germany —they’ve taken the serious crimes out of the chain of command for precisely this reason,” Gillibrand said. “Because the commander, while you are all so dedicated and determined, not all commanders are objective. Not every single commander necessarily wants women in the force, not every single commander believes what a sexual assault is, not every single commander can distinguish between a slap on the ass and a rape because they merge all of these crimes together.” 

 

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