Biden makes pitch for retired general to be Pentagon chief
WASHINGTON » Presidentelect Joe Biden on Tuesday made his case for retired Army Gen. Lloyd Austin to be secretary of defense, urging Congress to waive a legal prohibition against a recently serving military officer running the Pentagon.
With concern rising in Congress about maintaining civilian control of the military, Biden suggested he felt a need to counter an emerging narrative that Austin’s nomination blurs the lines between civil and military roles.
“Given the immense and urgent threats and challenges our nation faces, he should be confirmed swiftly,” Biden wrote in The Atlantic.
It was his first public confirmation that Austin is his pick for Pentagon chief, although word had leaked out Monday, prompting criticism and skepticism from some in Congress.
Biden countered the concerns by arguing that Austin knows that a Pentagon chief’s duties are different from those of a military officer. He said Austin is aware that “the civil-military dynamic has been under great stress these past four years,” an allusion to President Donald Trump’s hiring of numerous retired generals for key posts early in his administration, including retired Marine Gen. Jim Mattis as defense secretary.
Biden argued that Austin would work to put the civil-military balance “back on track.” He said the main reason he picked Austin was because he reacts well under pressure.
“He is the person we need in this moment,” Biden wrote.
Austin would be the first Black leader of the Pentagon, and the historic nature of the nomination, particularly in a year of extraordinary racial tension in the country, adds an intriguing dimension to the debate in Congress over one of the key members of Biden’s Cabinet.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., followed Biden’s lead, announcing her support and calling Austin “particularly well-positioned to lead during this precarious moment.”
Austin was an unexpected choice. Most speculation centered on Michele Flournoy, an experienced Washington hand and Biden supporter. She would have been the first woman to run the Pentagon. Flournoy issued a statement Tuesday congratulating Austin and calling him a man of deep integrity.
Austin is widely admired for his military service, which includes leading troops in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan and overseeing U.S. military operations throughout the greater Middle East as head of Central Command. But the requirement for a congressional waiver makes getting him installed as Pentagon chief more complicated than usual. Austin retired in 2016 after 41 years in the Army and has never held a political position.