Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin criticized Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s blanket hold on department appointments on Monday for “undermining America’s military readiness” and creating stress for an incalculable number of military families.
“This is unprecedented, it is unnecessary, and it is unsafe,” Austin said at a retirement ceremony for Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday in Maryland. “It’s hindering our ability to retain our very best officers and it is upending the lives of far too many American military families.
“Our troops deserve better. Our military families deserve better. And our allies and partners deserve better and our national security deserves better.”
Gilday will be replaced by Adm. Lisa Franchetti, who is currently the vice chief of navy operations. She will be the first woman to serve on the Joint Chiefs of Staff. But Alabama Senator Tuberville has stopped a vote on her approval and more than 300 others, including the top military officer positions in the Army and Marine Corps. Gilday’s retirement means that three of the eight most important posts in the Defense Department do not have a leader who has been approved by the Senate.
