Top military leaders appeared before the Senate on Tuesday to refuse calls for independent oversight of sexual assault in the armed forces. The military has faced renewed calls to remove oversight from the chain of command following a report showing around 26,000 sex crimes within the ranks last year. The findings coincided with the recent arrests of several Army officials involved in sexual assault prevention on charges they committed some of the very crimes they are tasked with overseeing. Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York told a nearly all-male contingent of military commanders that victimized servicemembers are afraid to report sexual assault.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand: “You have lost the trust of the men and women who rely on you that you will actually bring justice in these cases. They’re afraid to report. They think their careers will be over. They fear retaliation. They fear being blamed. That is our biggest challenge, right there, right there.”

Senator John McCain of Arizona weighed in on the assaults by saying the climate is so dangerous for women in the military that he could not unconditionally recommend that a woman enlist.