The Senate will convene Friday morning to confirm Lloyd J. Austin, a retired Army general and former top commander of American forces in the Middle East, as President Joe Biden’s secretary of defense.
Both houses of Congress moved quickly approve a waiver for Austin on Thursday afternoon, clearing his path to become the nation’s first Black defense secretary and the second recently retired military commander in four years to fill that role, which is traditionally reserved for civilians. People who have retired from the military within the previous seven years cannot be confirmed for the post unless they receive a waiver; Austin retired in 2016.
