Biden Defense Secretary pledged to uphold the ‘principle of civilian control of the military’

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The vow comes as Austin must overcome objections from some lawmakers about allowing a recently retired general to take the top civilian post at the Pentagon. Austin would be the first African-American to lead the department, but to get confirmation he would first need to obtain a waiver of a law requiring a secretary to wait seven years of active service before taking the job.

Biden’s Defense Secretary’s choice addressed these concerns directly during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Tuesday afternoon, saying: “If this is confirmed, I will fulfill the Defense Ministry’s mission. , always with the aim of deterring war and ensuring the security of our country, and I will respect the principle of civilian control of the army, as intended. “

Austin, who retired in 2016, has reached out to key House and Senate lawmakers who will have to agree to pass legislation to grant the waiver, which has only been granted twice before in history, including for James Mattis to lead President Donald Trump’s Pentagon in 2017.

“I understand and respect the reservations that some of you have expressed about the presence of another recently retired general at the head of the Ministry of Defense,” he said during the hearing. “The safety and security of our democracy requires competent civilian control of our armed forces, the subordination of military power to civilian power.”

Austin went on to say, “I have spent my whole life adhering to this principle. In war and in peace, I implemented the policy of elected and appointed civilians in my stead, leaders like Secretary (Leon) Panetta. I know being a member of the president’s office – a political appointee – needs a different perspective and unique duties of a uniformed career. “

The hearing comes as Democratic congressional leaders push for swift confirmation from Biden’s cabinet and other key administration officials. This timeline can be complicated, however, by the fact that the Senate will soon have to begin an impeachment trial after the House votes to impeach Trump in his final days in office for inciting a deadly siege on the U.S. Capitol after the summons. of a joint session. to assert Biden’s victory in the Electoral College.
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Another obstacle that could slow down the confirmation process for Austin is that he will, in effect, have to win two votes: one of the two chambers of Congress to grant the waiver, and another from the Senate to confirm him for the position. The House is expected to vote on the waiver on Thursday.

During his hearing on Tuesday, Austin pledged to fight to rid the Department of Defense of “racists and extremists.”

“We also owe our employees a work environment free from discrimination, hatred and harassment. If this is confirmed, I will fight hard to eradicate sexual assault and rid our ranks of racists and extremists.”

“The job of the Department of Defense is to protect America from our enemies,” Austin said. “But we can’t do that if some of these enemies are in our own ranks.”

Austin will no longer testify before the House Armed Services Committee on Thursday as scheduled hearing “to discuss civilian oversight of the military” was canceled in favor of a closed meeting with lawmakers, aide says of the panel.

The reason for the change, the aide told CNN on Tuesday, was that the House Armed Services Committee will not be formed for the new Congress in time.

“The commission cannot formally organize itself until the majority and minority leaders nominate the full list of members. It has become clear that the full composition of the commission will not be finalized until the hearing scheduled for Thursday to discuss civilian control of the military with the appointed secretary. Lloyd Austin, ”committee assistant Monica Matoush said on Tuesday. “As such, we cannot yet convene the organizational meeting of our committee or formally conduct committee business as a hearing. Once the members have been appointed and the committee has been organized, we will continue.

The closed-door meeting with House lawmakers could help speed up Austin’s nomination, but also risks alienating those who wanted to hear him testify before voting on the waiver.

Austin told Rep. Adam Smith, a Democrat from Washington state who is the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, that he was ready to answer questions and testify publicly about the waiver to reassure lawmakers on his belief in civilian control.

Smith has always expressed support for Austin, but has also said he would like to hear him testify.

CNN’s Michael Conte contributed to this report.

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