France 24
Joe Biden chooses ex-General Lloyd Austin to lead Pentagon
According to several American media outlets, President-elect Joe Biden has chosen retired General Lloyd Austin, who oversaw American troops deployed in the Middle East during Barack Obama’s tenure, as Secretary of Defense. If confirmed to the post by the Senate, he would become the first African-American to lead the Pentagon. The United States may soon have its first African-American Secretary of Defense. President-elect Joe Biden has chosen former General Lloyd Austin to lead the Pentagon, several American media announced Monday (December 7th). According to Politico, who first reported the information, Joe Biden could officially reveal the name of the lucky man on Tuesday, the retired Army general, 67, who fought in Iraq and France. Afghanistan before becoming the first man of color to lead US Army Central Command (Centcom). If approved by the Senate, the ex-general would be the first African-American to lead the world’s first army , in which the black community is well represented. The former head of Centcom – the body overseeing wars in the Middle East – would have been preferred to Michèle Flournoy, who could have become the first woman to lead the Pentagon. Lloyd Austin had succeeded at the head of Centcom to Jim Mattis, who was Donald Trump’s defense minister from 2017 to 2019. He retired in 2016, before moving to the defense industry, like many of its predecessors. He sits on the board of directors of Raytheon Technologies. This position has earned him criticism from some progressives. Like “America” Elected officials of Congress and national security experts also spoke out against his appointment, noting that his retirement was less than seven years old. The US Congress, which maintains civilian control over the military, has passed regulations stipulating that a former military must be retired for more than seven years to become Minister of Defense. As this deadline would not be respected with Lloyd Austin, the elected officials should grant him a dispensation. They had done it in 2016 for Jim Mattis, but in protest. “His candidacy should not be considered, nor that of Mattis should not have been,” tweeted the Conservative elected Justin Amash on Monday. “The law prohibits recently retired military personnel from occupying this civilian post. Biden should not be the second consecutive president to violate this standard.” “I have nothing but respect for Lloyd Austin, but pick another retired general if recently that he will need a dispensation from Congress sends a very bad message, “tweeted Rosa Brooks, a former Pentagon official who now teaches at Georgetown University. Black parliamentarians and personalities had called on Joe Biden to appoint more African Americans in key cabinet positions. The president-elect, 78, and future vice president Kamala Harris, 56, the first black woman and person to hold the office, have promised a government that “looks like America” in all its diversity. With AFP
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