Below is a brief excerpt from a Department of Defense news briefing from The Pentagon in Arlington, VA; the presenters are Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Admiral Michael Mullen:

SEC. GATES:  Good afternoon.  I have a short statement about the Department of Defense review process relating to the Fort Hood shootings. 

At the outset, I should tell you that we will not discuss any details of the ongoing criminal investigation.  That inquiry, and any related military justice proceeding, must by law be carried to completion without outside interference, and must be conducted in a fair and impartial manner. 

Furthermore, during this time, senior DOD leaders, both civilian and military, must be careful to avoid statements or actions that could be perceived as attempts to influence that process.  I urge other senior leaders to be mindful of this, and urge those with firsthand knowledge of the facts to refrain from comment unless expressly authorized.  

The shootings at Fort Hood raise a number of troubling questions that demand complete but prompt answers.  As you know, the president ordered a government-wide review to look at all intelligence related to this matter, how such intelligence was handled, shared and acted on within and between individual departments and agencies. 

An initial response on that review is due back November 30th.   

Today, I am announcing that the Department of Defense will conduct a separate review to ensure the safety and health of DOD employees and their families.  We do not enter this process with any preconceived notions.   

However it is prudent to determine immediately whether there are internal weaknesses or procedural shortcomings, in the department, that could make us vulnerable in the future.  To this end, I’ve ordered a 45-day review with three areas of emphasis.   

First, to find possible gaps or deficiencies in Defense Department programs, processes and procedures for identifying service members who could potentially pose credible threats to others.   

Second, to assess among other issues personnel reliability programs, medical screening programs, service member release and discharge policies and procedures, pre-and-post-deployment health assessment programs, periodic counseling sessions and procedures on the reporting and handling of adverse service member information.   

And third and finally, to examine the sufficiency of both the department’s domestic physical security programs, at Department of Defense facilities, and its emergency response capabilities for mass casualty events at our facilities.   

Former Army Secretary Togo West and former Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Vern Clark have agreed to head this 45-day review. And I thank them for their public service and their contribution in what will be an intense effort.   

Both are intimately familiar with the department and devoted to the safety of Defense Department employees and their families.  And I know that they will conduct a serious, thorough and honest assessment.  

As part of this review, each service will appoint a senior official to work with Secretary West and Admiral Clark, on service-specific issues.  In light of the Fort Hood incident and unique challenges, the Army will conduct a more in-depth, detailed assessment whether Army programs, policies and procedures reasonably could have prevented the shooting.   

Those findings will be submitted as part of the Army’s contribution to the departmental review.   

This initial review is by no means the end of the process; rather, it is just the beginning.  Its results will inform and largely shape a department-wide follow-on examination of any systemic institutional shortcomings, an examination I expect to be completed within four to six months.   

This more in-depth review will entail each service selecting an investigative panel.  These panels will in turn report their findings to a DOD-level panel which will assess the findings and identify needed changes in policy and procedure, as well as areas where additional resources are required.  Among other issues, this review will cover topics such as service member support programs, care for victims and families of mass causality events, how we assess and sustain the performance of healthcare providers, and overall stress on the troops and their families.   

In all of these, I promise the Department of Defense’s full and open disclosure.  There is nothing any of us can say to ease the pain for the wounded, the families of the fallen, and the members of the Fort Hood community touched by this incident, pain I saw vividly and firsthand yesterday in Mountain City, Tennessee.  All that is left for us to do is everything in our power to prevent similar tragedies from occurring in the future. 

Laura?

To view the news briefing in its entirety, please click here.