Executive Session

Floor Speech

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Mr. CRAMER. Mr. President, first of all, I just want to associate myself with the words of my colleague Senator Blunt. I couldn't say it as eloquently. I certainly couldn't improve upon it. I am just going to say I completely agree. Thank you.

The real purpose for my coming to the floor today is to demonstrate my support for MG Scott Spellmon of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

General Spellmon is up for a promotion to Lieutenant General and has been nominated to become the Chief of Engineers and Commanding General to replace General Semonite as he retires.

Since coming to the Senate, General Semonite and I have become well acquainted with each other. While we haven't always agreed, I do appreciate his service, his very hard work, and his accessibility, especially during this COVID-19 pandemic.

His retirement is well earned, and I thank him for his service and wish him well.

As a member of the Armed Services Committee and the Environment and Public Works Committee, I serve on two of the Army Corps committees of jurisdiction. As many of my colleagues can attest, it is a rare occasion that I compliment the Corps. It is an agency that is the epitome in many cases of cumbersome bureaucracy.

I am not unique in my frustration. During our last EPW hearing with the Corps, criticism was both bipartisan and tangible. From Rhode Island to North Dakota to Oregon, each of us expressed frustration with a seemingly tone-deaf bureaucracy, which either doesn't do what it is supposed to do or does what it is not supposed to do.

That frustration brings me here today: Major General Spellmon's pending nomination and promotion. Throughout this process, I have worked closely with General Spellmon on numerous issues important to North Dakota and other Western States.

Early on, I spoke with him regarding the Spring Creek embankment in Central North Dakota. Due to the poor maintenance of relief wells, the Corps was going to move forward with a water control plan that could potentially devastate water supply and irrigation needs in eastern parts of my State.

As per usual, the Corps' decision matrix was overly complicated and did not adequately reflect the needs and realities of rural America. When I brought the issue to General Spellmon, he promised to take a fresh look and reassess the economic impacts of the project. He then worked with me to craft legislation supporting these efforts, which was added to the water infrastructure legislation we unanimously passed out of the EPW not too long ago. He listened to the problem and is working with me to help solve it.

I also challenged General Spellmon on Western State water rights--a problem that has plagued Western States that operate under the prior appropriation doctrine. On a bipartisan basis, Democrats and Republicans from Western States have been frustrated by an Army Corps that either ignores States and Tribes or needlessly inserts extra bureaucracy into decisions that are really not theirs to make. Once again, General Spellmon listened intently to the concern and provided thorough, honest responses to be used as a guidepost for Corps policy moving forward.

Of equal importance, he acknowledged the flaws within his own organization. In my time in Congress, honesty sometimes seems to be missing but not with General Spellmon. He has proven he is willing to listen and be responsive in a forthright manner, and I thank him for that.

I am confident General Spellmon will continue to listen to Western States and provide the necessary deference to them pursuant to congressional intent and to our Nation's Constitution. I have appreciated getting to know the general, and while my oversight and questions may not have always been the most enjoyable to him, he has proven to be up to the task of replacing General Semonite. I support his nomination and promotion, and I hope his exemplary service will be replicated by the rest of the bureaucracy he is going to lead.

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