Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin issued a memorandum to the military on Wednesday announcing that the department “will make a calm, orderly, and professional transition” to the incoming Trump administration.

The secretary, who served in the role for the entirety of the Biden administration, said in the memo that “the U.S. military will stand ready to carry out the policy choices of its next Commander in Chief, and to obey all lawful orders from its civilian chain of command.”

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