SECDEF- Promotion Hold “National Security Crisis”
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin
Promotion to Flag ain’t easy. Requirements just begin with age limits and duty on the altar of Jointness. DOD selection boards specific to general or flag officers provide names to the President, who then presents his list to the Senate for confirmation. Pass that and welcome to 0-7, same for 0-8. Rules change a bit for three-star and above. More on that later.
The senior officer selection process has been halted by Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL).
US defense secretary says Tuberville holds are ‘national security issue’
Sarah Dean
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s holds on hundreds of senior military nominations are a “national security issue.”
“This is a national security issue. It’s a readiness issue. And, we shouldn’t kid ourselves. I think any member of the Senate Armed Services Committee knows that,” Austin said in an interview Thursday with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer following the NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania.
When asked by Blitzer if the defense secretary would have a conversation with the Alabama senator to get this resolved, Austin said he would “continue to engage” with Tuberville, and added the two had a conversation in March.
Tuberville insisted earlier this week in an interview with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins that he is not blocking confirmations and that the Senate had plenty of time to take up the nominees. Tuberville has not backed down from maintaining his block on nominations as he protests the Defense Department’s reproductive health policies..
Sources report the SECDEF spoke with Tuberville on Thursday, and stressed to him the national security problems stemming from the leadership hold in a brief conversation.
A spokesman from Tuberville responded to a tweet that the Senator spoke with Austin and said he’s “..grateful for the cordial and productive conversation and looks forward to continuing dialogue in the near future.”
Tuberville has placed the hold over a Pentagon policy of allowing service members to be reimbursed for travel for non-covered reproductive healthcare- abortions. He argues that the policy violates the law that restricts federal funds for abortion. On a side note, House Democrats are bailing from the Defense Authorization Bill for similar conservative concerns. Republicans have passed amendments overturning the same Pentagon abortion travel policy and restricting transgender medical care on the usually bipartisan bill.
Back to three-and-four star ascension process. Briefly, candidates’ names are forwarded to the SECDEF via the several Service Secretaries instead of the peer review process a selection board provides. The national security crisis seems to be latest crop of military sycophants nominated by woke Secretaries is on hold, and it’s becoming a problem for Joe’s Handlers.
Category: Big Pentagon, Politics, Reality Check
Cry harder.
If you don’t like our constitutional republic maybe you should try a coup, junta this bitch up?
History likes those.
Not sure that more politicians,,,I mean flag officers will be of much help to the readiness and war fighting aspects of the military, but I hope these delays aren’t affecting the FEDREC for NG officers. Not sure that it’s part of this hold up. The FEDREC process already takes WAY too long.
Well, this is what happens when you politicize the military.
As a retired junior Senior NCO (yep, thought when I made SFC I’d be part of the Big Boy Club, but E8 and E9 get their Zulu Senior Sergeant identifier for a reason) I call BS. If someone is needed to fill a position, they fill it. If that position is for a 4-Star or 3-Star, and a 2-Star is all that’s available, so be it. We see this all the time with NCOs. I’ve known plenty of E6 Platoon Sergeants, frocked E7 First Sergeants and E8 Sergeants Major, and even E3 Team Leaders.
There is no “national security issue”. The military’s structure ensures that someone is in any given position. Maybe it’s inconvenient that someone isn’t confirmed and officially recognized as a service chief, but the military will continue to run as well as it can, given the fact that the current CinC is mentally vacant and nearly everyone past the paygrade of O6 is more worried with Hurt Feelings Reports and making sure that our military is inclusive.
Dr Mr Austin,
If you’re serious about “national security issues”, might I suggest that you check out the inventory of artillery shells available to the military. Perhaps that might be of a lot more concern than some one star getting his second star?
Sincerely,
A Citizen
Or the open flood gate that is the southern border.
Sorry Mason, didn’t pay attention to your comment until I posted. But, great minds! 😉
And, remember the billions of dollars that was left behind for the Taliban?
As well as our wide open Southern boarder.
We damn sure do have some national security problems, but I don’t think delaying another pampered prince with stars on their shoulders is one of them.
These people really don’t like civilian oversight of the military, do they?
As if tons of people all the way down to E-4 aren’t filling temporary and acting billets all the time. This time it’s not an E-7 serving on a combat deployment as a 1SG, it’s holding back senior officers! The horror!
Since they push Woke, No Stars till they wear a tight dress and walk the Trans-DEI catwalk before the camera’s, then define National Security, Climate Change and what a woman is!
Wars come and go, but DEI is where it’s at!
https://twitchy.com/dougp/2023/07/14/john-kirby-makes-it-clear-that-even-if-the-us-loses-the-next-war-the-dei-score-will-be-impressive-n2385410
I am cynical enough to believe that Austin is stupid enough to believe what he says.
PS
As evidence I cite the picture of “Darth Austin” at the head of this article. A picture is, indeed, worth a thousand words.
Last thing one should do is take an army of clowns seriously, and that choad isn’t just a professor of clown science, he’s the; dean, president, union head and chief glory hole inspector at Clown U!
https://youtu.be/SJlJayMi8kQ?t=10
You mean, like this?
My KING!
roflmao
If Idi had his way, he would have already eaten Austin, and we wouldn’t have to up with his wokistry.
Darth Scheisskopf
SGT Schultz’s Love Child from Schultz’s service during the North African Campaign. And just like SGT Schultz…he knows nothing.
Hack Stone would have thought that the shortage of artillery shells for the US Military may be a bigger “national security issue”.
Tears of joy.😂
SECDEF is a national security crisis. As is his boss.
The real threat to our national security is you and the rest of this corrupt and incompetent administration.
Now go back to sucking on Biden’s ass.
As 2/PANTHER/6 82/ABN he was a rock star,,, now POOP
I really hope I’m wrong but these incompetent politicians and generals / Admirals are going to get a lot of kids killed if we get into it with China. It’s passed even being an embarrassment. Wake the heck up America, it’s your kids lives these people hold in their hands. If we don’t straighten out our military and prioritize war fighting over woke, and don’t lure the traditional recruits back we’re going to lose badly in a war with China especially in their part of the world. No way you want your kids to be in especially at the beginning of the next major conflict with these clowns at the helm.