Austin helms Pentagon as 1st Black chief
The Senate on Friday confirmed Gen. Lloyd Austin as defense secretary, filling a critical national security position in President Biden’s Cabinet and elevating him as the first Black Pentagon chief.
The 932 vote came a day after Congress granted Austin a special waiver to hold the post, which is required for any defense secretary who has been out of activeduty military service for fewer than seven years.
“It’s an extraordinary, historic moment,” said Sen. Jack Reed, DR.I., the chairman of the Armed Services Committee. “A significant portion of our armed forces today are African Americans or Latinos, and now they can see themselves at the very top of the Department of Defense.”
Austin, 67, is the only African American to have led U.S. Central Command, the military’s marquee combat command, with responsibility for Iraq, Afghanistan, Yemen and Syria. He retired in 2016 after 41 years in the military, and is widely respected across the Army.
Lawmakers in both parties initially had been uneasy at the prospect of granting Austin an exception to the statutory bar against recently retired military personnel serving as Pentagon chiefs, a law intended to maintain civilian control of the military.
But facing intense pressure from officials from Biden’s transition team and top Democrats, and after receiving assurances from Austin that he was committed to the principle of civilian control, lawmakers rallied behind a barriershattering nominee.