{"id":41110,"date":"2019-07-23T17:12:24","date_gmt":"2019-07-23T17:12:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2019\/07\/23\/hyten-accuser-testifies-in-private-before-senate-panel\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T23:23:04","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T23:23:04","slug":"hyten-accuser-testifies-in-private-before-senate-panel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/07\/23\/hyten-accuser-testifies-in-private-before-senate-panel\/","title":{"rendered":"Hyten accuser testifies in private before Senate panel"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Update at 4:07 p.m. EST to reflect fuller comments from Sen. Jim Inhofe.<\/b><\/i><\/p>\n\n\n\n

WASHINGTON \u2014 As lawmakers decide the fate of Gen. John Hyten\u2019s nomination<\/a> for vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, they met privately Tuesday to interview the woman who accused<\/a> him of sexually assaulting her, according to two Democratic senators.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Confirmation for Hyten, the chief of U.S. Strategic Command, met with a dramatic development as members of the Senate Armed Services Committee convened in the Senate\u2019s secure facility to question the accuser.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jim Inhofe confirmed that Hyten, whose nomination was announced in April<\/a>, is expected to give his testimony to the panel in a closed hearing on Thursday. Inhofe expressed hope Hyten would then provide public testimony as soon as next week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI am personally interested in moving forward with him after we have an executive session that members of the committee will have to discuss it,\u201d Inhofe, R-Okla., told reporters Tuesday afternoon, adding that he still believes that the military investigation that cleared Hyten was very thorough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After one private presentation to the committee\u2019s leadership and a separate presentation to the full panel in recent days, Inhofe had said he did not think it was necessary that he hear directly from Hyten\u2019s accuser. \u201cI can\u2019t recall a better run and more thorough investigation,\u201d Inhofe said Tuesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The accuser is reportedly an Army colonel with 28 years of service and a former subordinate of Hyten\u2019s. After she came forward in April, Air Force investigators found insufficient evidence to bring criminal charges against Hyten or to recommend administrative actions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Exiting Tuesday\u2019s hearing, Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., said she found the woman to be credible and that the testimony raised new questions about the military investigation that cleared Hyten.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lawmakers interviewed the woman from roughly 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Tuesday, according to Duckworth. Lawmakers did not ask questions directly but provided them to staff to ask of the woman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m pleased she was allowed to speak,\u201d Duckworth said. \u201cI thought she conducted herself very professionally, and she was very believable.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Duckworth said the live testimony delivered more of an impact than video evidence presented in private by military investigators a week earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe survivor deserves respect and serious consideration, and I will have it very closely in mind; We will be hearing from Gen. Hyten as well,\u201d said Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn. \u201cIt is imperative that we hear from both.<\/p>\n\n\n\t