U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton spent some time on a submarine this month, traveling through the freezing waters of Alaska.
"The Navy conducts what they call the Ice Exercise, or ICEX, every two years," he said. "The secretary of the Navy invited me to go."
The Republican from Dardanelle traveled aboard the USS Connecticut.
It's a chance "to learn more about operating under the Arctic ice and Arctic warfare, also how to surface, when necessary, through the Arctic ice," he said.
Cotton said he was impressed with the servicemen he encountered.
"The young sailors and their officers on the submarine are extremely proficient. You know, they're running a nuclear reactor in addition to the sonar systems and the torpedo missile systems," he said. "I have great confidence that if necessary they'll be prepared to fight at the Arctic just like they are anywhere else."
Planning to visit the nation's capital? Know something happening in Washington, D.C.? Please contact Frank Lockwood at (202) 662-7690 or flockwood@arkansasonline.com. Want the latest from the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette's Washington bureau? It's available on Twitter, @LockwoodFrank.
Metro on 03/25/2018