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Biden nominates Christine Wormuth to be first woman to serve as Secretary of the Army

US Army Secretary (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
US Army Secretary (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Joe Biden has nominated Christine Wormuth to be secretary of the Army. If confirmed by the Senate, she would be the first woman ever to serve in the role and one of the most powerful officials in the Washington defence establishment.

At present, Ms Wormuth is director of the International Security and Defense Policy Centre at the RAND Corporation, a federally funded think tank.

During the transition, she led the Biden-Harris defence agency review team, and on the campaign served as the co-chair of the defence working group.

If confirmed, she would work alongside the Army’s chief of staff, General James McConville, who does not command soldiers but is responsible, along with the Army secretary, for training and equipping them.

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Ms Wormuth served as undersecretary of Defence policy during the Obama administration, the third most senior civilian position in the Department of Defense.

She advised two defence secretaries on the full range of foreign policy and national security issues.

Her experience also includes serving as the senior director for defence policy on the National Security Council, helping shape the 2012 Defence Strategic Guidance that began rebalancing the military toward the Indo-Pacific.

She also shaped the US military’s counter-ISIS campaign alongside Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, when he was the commander of US Central Command.

Ms Wormuth originally joined the Obama administration in 2009 as principal deputy assistant secretary of defence for homeland defence and civil support.

Previously, she was a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, worked in the private sector, and served for almost seven years as a civil servant in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, beginning as a Presidential Management Fellow.

Ms Wormuth teaches as an adjunct professor in Georgetown University’s graduate programme in security studies and serves on the honorary advisory board of the Leadership Committee for Women in National Security.

She has twice received the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service.

Secretary Austin, currently travelling overseas, praised her track record and deep experience in a prepared statement: “Christine is a true patriot with a dedicated career in service to America and our nation’s security.”

“I have no doubt that if confirmed she will lead our soldiers and represent their families with honor and integrity as the secretary of the army,” Mr Austin said.

The president has not yet nominated anyone to serve as Air Force or Navy secretary. Many other Pentagon positions that require Senate confirmation also have yet to be filled.

Also on Monday, the White House announced the nominations of Susanna Blume to be the head of the Pentagon’s Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation office; former California Representative Gil Cisneros to be undersecretary of defence for personnel and readiness; and Christy Abizaid to be director of the National Counterterrorism Center at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

The most senior Defense Department nominee still awaiting Senate confirmation is Colin Kahl, picked to be undersecretary of defence for policy.

His nomination emerged from the committee on a 13-13 vote and it’s unclear when the full Senate will act.

With reporting by The Associated Press

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