House Armed Services Committee Meeting

By: McClain Matter and Andy Crowe, Legislative Interns

In a recent House Armed Services Committee (HASC) hearing, Chairman Adam Smith outlined procedural instructions for remote participation and introduced new members of the committee.

The procedure for remote participation is as follows; First, keep yourself muted unless you are officially speaking. Second, members joining remotely must be visible on screen for the purposes of establishing and maintaining a quorum, seeking recognition, participating in the proceeding, and voting. Third, if a member experiences technical difficulty, they should contact the committee staff for assistance. Lastly, virtual members must unmute themselves and seek recognition verbally.

Chairman Smith then proceeded to welcome the new and returning members of the committee. The seven new Democrat committee members are Joe Morelle (NY), Sarah Jacobs (CA), Kai Kahele (HI), Marilyn Strickland (WA), Mark Veasey (TX), Jimmy Panetta (CA), and Stephanie Murphy (FL). Ranking Member Mike Rogers spoke on the rising threats from China’s concerted push for global domination and then proceeded to introduce the new Republican committee members. The nine new Republican members are Mike Johnson (LA), Mark Green (TN), Stephanie Bice (OK), Scott Franklin (FL), Lisa McClain (MI), Ronny Jackson (TX), Jerry Carl (AL), Blake Moore (UT), and Pat Fallon (TX).
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Chairman Smith proceeded to put committee resolutions into place. First, the HASC adopted the resolution to adopt the committee rules for the 117th Congress. Second, the security procedures for the 117th Congress were adopted. Third, committee staff was appointed to the 117th Congress. Chairman Smith reminded the committee they are operating with a combined staff, meaning every staff member works and is available to every committee member, regardless of party.

Chairman Adam Smith and Ranking Member Mike Rogers are proud of the cooperative and bipartisan history of the HASC and are hopeful the committee will remain as such in the future.

Watch the live stream here