The Senate moved expeditiously to assemble President Biden’s national security team, overwhelmingly confirming retired Gen. Lloyd Austin as both chambers granted him a special waiver to serve as defense secretary despite having been out of uniform for only four years.
The Senate voted 93-2 to confirm him; GOP Sens. Josh Hawley of Missouri and Mike Lee of Utah were the only nay votes. Austin’s nomination needed only a simple majority of the 100 senators to be approved.
Austin, 67, becomes the first African American to lead the Pentagon, overcoming opposition from some Democrats who were wary of granting another waiver to the 1947 national security law that requires service members to be out of uniform for seven years before consideration for the Defense Department’s top civilian position.
Former President Donald Trump’s first defense secretary nominee, retired Marine Corps Gen. Jim Mattis, received a waiver in 2017, upsetting many by surrounding himself with former and active-duty personnel — and sidelining some civilian voices at the Pentagon.
Austin successfully convinced members of Congress he would staff his senior team differently.
“I intend to surround myself with and empower experienced, capable civilians who will enable healthy civil-military relations,” Austin said in the opening statement of his Senate confirmation hearing Tuesday.
At that session, senators also contended Austin was the right choice to help root out extremism from the ranks. The four-star general reaffirmed their demands he tackle the issue following investigations by federal law enforcement officials that found former military members within the violent mob that broke into then ransacked the Capitol on Jan. 6.
“I don’t think this is a thing you can put a Band-Aid on and fix and leave alone,” Austin said forcefully, stressing how leaders must instill military values in subordinates. “Failure to be able to adhere to those values means you shouldn’t be a part of our formation.”
The 41-year Army veteran and former chief of U.S. Central Command becomes the second member of Biden’s national security team to receive Senate approval after Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines was confirmed Wednesday evening.
Liberal Democrats who opposed the exemption included Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Army veteran Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, while incoming Senate Armed Services Chairman Jack Reed, a Delaware Democrat, reversed his opposition to Mattis by supporting the new Democratic commander in chief’s request for Austin’s waiver.
Despite effusive praise days earlier, Arkansas Republican Tom Cotton stood his ground to oppose the exemption, only to employ some political gymnastics by voting to confirm the retired Army general and U.S. Central Command chief.
Ultimately, a majority of lawmakers voiced their opinion that bringing much-needed stability to the Pentagon was more urgent than worries over setting an unwanted precedent.
“The disruption that President Trump brought to the Pentagon cannot be underestimated,” House Armed Services Committee Chairman Adam Smith said on the floor earlier Thursday, arguing that the country was in a time of crisis and the Defense Department in upheaval.
Smith noted that the Pentagon saw five acting and permanent defense secretaries during Trump’s time in office.
“That many people have churned through the leadership role at the Pentagon,” he said. “It is still problematic to have that much turnover.”
Smith bypassed a House Armed Services Committee hearing with Austin to rush the law to a vote but arranged for Austin to be questioned by members for more than two hours to assuage concerns about civilian control of the military.
Austin took senators’ questions Tuesday, promising to surround himself with civilian experts in the roles of deputy secretary, undersecretary for policy, and chief of staff. Austin also said he would empower the top civilians to make key decisions.
“I come to this new role as a civilian leader with military experience,” Austin said at his introduction by Biden in Delaware Dec. 9.
Biden’s call for the exemption a month ago also made reference to the unique stresses facing the nation.
“Civilian-military, the dynamic, that dynamic itself has been under great stress the past four years,” Biden said. “He’ll be bolstered by a strong and empowered civilian sector and senior officials working to shape DOD’s policies and ensure that our defense policies are accountable to the American people.”
