When Rep. Chrissy Houlahan sits down to question witnesses at a House Armed Services Committee hearing, it can feel like a time machine back to her own military service.

For one thing, the officers seated across from her are often mostly male.

“When you’re sitting across from a row of general officers, and the vast majority of them are men, and the person behind them is a woman, that was kind of what it was like 30 years ago,” the Pennsylvania Democrat said.

At a tense moment for women in the military, Houlahan is part of a small yet growing group of female members of Congress who are also veterans. The two roles have some things in common.

“When I was standing watch at the National Military Command Center, you didn’t get to choose the person sitting to your left and your right. You fi

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