House Approves Waiver For Lloyd Austin, Biden’s Pick To Head Pentagon

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President Biden’s nominee for secretary of sefense, retired Army Gen. Lloyd Austin, testifying at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee Tuesday.

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«Let me say at the outset, that I understand and respect the reservations that some of you have expressed about having another recently-retired general at the head of the Department of Defense, Austin told lawmakers.

«The safety and security of our democracy demands competent civilian control of our armed forces. The subordination of military power to the civil, he added.

In an op-ed last month in The Atlantic, Biden described Austin as a trailblazer. «Austin’s many strengths and intimate knowledge of the Department of Defense and our government are uniquely matched to the challenges we face, Biden wrote. «He is the person we need in this moment.

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President Biden’s nominee for secretary of defense, retired U.S. Army Gen. Lloyd Austin, arrives at the inauguration ceremony on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol Wednesday. Austin needs Congress to approve a waiver in order for him to serve as Pentagon chief because he hasn’t been out of uniform for the required seven years.

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Adding to the pressure on House Democrats are reports that members of the Republican Steering Committee, an influential conservative bloc of House lawmakers, plan to oppose the waiver for Austin. It argues that approving it would set a «new dangerous precedent after doing so just four years after granting a waiver to Mattis.

«Furthermore, regardless of the ‘waiver,’ Gen. Austin is not the right person for the job of secretary of Defense, the committee said in a memo to members, according to The Hill.

Blocking @LloydAustin's confirmation will send a false, dangerous message that Congress believes a highly qualified African American is unable to do the job – that would be a grave mistake. (9/9)

— Rep. Adam Smith (@RepAdamSmith) January 18, 2021

In 2017, 36 House Democrats joined all but one GOP member in approving the waiver for Mattis. The lone Republican defection, Rep. Justin Amash, R-Mich., did not seek reelection in 2020.