December 25 2020
President-elect Joe Biden has nominated a former chief of the Central Command, retired Army Gen. Lloyd Austin, to be Defense Secretary.
If confirmed, Austin, 67, a retired four-star general, would be the first African American to lead the Defense Department. He was also the first Black American to lead Central Command, which oversees the US military in the Middle East and parts of Africa, Central Asia and South Asia, including Iran. He was also the first Black officer to head a division, who, in Army-speak, are the officers who “can make it rain.”
He had combat commands in both Afghanistan and Iraq and was the last commander of American forces in Iraq while they engaged in combat.
His relationship with Biden goes back years. The two spent many hours working together when Austin was running CENT-COM, which he did from 2013 to 2016, entirely during the Obama Administration. As vice president, Iraq was part of Biden’s portfolio so he worked closely with Austin all his years as CENTCOM commander.
As CENTCOM commander, Austin did not make as much news as his predecessors and successors. He was viewed as very private and rarely conducted news interviews or held press conferences and sometimes struggled during congressional hearings, of which he will be required to do many as defense secretary.
The New York Times suggested Biden picked Austin in part because he never played to the press as many commanders in the Middle East did.
Iran was not the major issue when Austin was head of CENTCOM so his views on Iran are unknown. He succeeded Gen. James Mattis as CENT-COM chief.
To be confirmed by the Senate, Austin will require a congressional waiver because he retired less than seven years ago. Only two other nominees have been granted such waivers, George C. Marshall in the 1940s and James Mattis, who served under President Trump.
As Biden continues to fill out his Cabinet, he is under pressure to name Black Americans to top posts.
Democratic Rep. Karen Bass of California told CNN in an interview that Biden needed to pick Black Americans for top Cabinet positions, like Defense Secretary or Attorney General, adding that Austin was one of the top contenders backed by the Congressional Black Caucus, which she chairs.
Biden selected Sen. Kamala Harris to be his running mate, and she will become the nation’s first Black vice president, in addition to being the first woman and the first Asian-American to hold the job.