The Trump administration is reportedly eyeing former Virginia Sen. Jim Webb to be the next secretary of defense following the New Year’s departure of Jim Mattis.
A Democrat who also served as secretary of the Navy during the Reagan administration, Webb has been contacted by representatives for Vice President Mike Pence and acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, the New York Times reports. A senior Defense Department official also said the White House was weighing a nomination for Webb.
Webb has been a staunch critic of the Iraq War, and the position comes as President Trump announced his intent to withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan and Syria. That move prompted Mattis to submit his resignation last month, and as of Jan. 1 Deputy Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan is serving as acting secretary of defense.
Webb appears to have more common ground with Trump. For example, Webb opposed the Obama administration’s Iran nuclear deal, which put restraints on Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for relief from crippling sanctions.
“The end result of this could well be our acquiescence in allowing Iran to develop a nuclear weapon,” Webb said in 2015.
Trump ultimately withdrew from the deal in 2018.
Webb did not respond to a request for comment from the New York Times.
Other candidates being considered by the White House include former GOP Sen. Jim Talent of Missouri, along with Republican Sens. Tom Cotton of Arkansas and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.
[Related: Trump’s base would love to have Jim Webb as defense secretary]
