Senate confirms Joint Chiefs chair despite Tuberville’s stalling

By James On Sep 21, 2023

The Senate on Wednesday confirmed Gen. CQ Brown as the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, succeeding Gen. Mark Milley when he retires at the end of this month.

General Brown’s confirmation by a vote of 83-11, months after President Joe Biden nominated him for the post, comes as Democrats try to maneuver around the hundreds of nominations that Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville placed on the Pentagon’s abortion policy . The Senate is also expected this week to confirm Gen. Randy George as Army chief of staff and Gen. Eric Smith as commander of the U.S. Marine Corps.

Mr. Tuberville has blocked the Senate from the routine process of approving military nominations in batches, frustrating Democrats who have said they would not go through the time-consuming process of putting individual nominations to a vote. More than 300 nominees are still stuck in Mr Tuberville’s blockade, and it would take months to confirm them one by one.

But Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., reversed course on Wednesday, forcing votes against Generals Brown, George and Smith.

“Senator Tuberville is forcing us to confront his obstruction head-on,” Schumer said. “I want to make it clear to my Republican colleagues that this cannot continue.”

Mr. Tuberville did not object to the confirmation votes, saying he will maintain his positions but is happy to bring up nominations individually for roll call votes.

White House national security spokesman John Kirby said General Brown’s confirmation, along with expected votes on Generals Smith and George, is positive news. But “we should never have been in this position,” he said.

“While it is good for these three officers, it does not solve the problem or provide a path forward for the 316 other generals and flag officers held up by this ridiculous hold,” Mr Kirby told reporters.

General Brown, a career fighter pilot, was the first black commander of the Air Force’s Pacific Air Forces and most recently the first black chief of staff, making him the first African American to lead any of the military branches. His appointment will also mark the first time that the Pentagon’s top two posts will be held by African Americans, with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin as the top civilian leader.

In a statement late Wednesday, Mr. Austin said General Brown would be a “great leader” as the new chairman.

General Brown replaces General Milley, who is retiring after forty years of military service. General Milley’s four-year term as chairman ends on September 30.

Mr. Tuberville said Wednesday that he will continue to block the other nominations unless the Pentagon ends its policy of paying for travel when a service member must leave the state to get an abortion or other reproductive care. The Biden administration introduced this policy after the Supreme Court struck down the nationwide right to abortion and some states restricted or banned the procedure.

“Let’s take it one by one or reverse the policy,” Mr. Tuberville said after Mr. Schumer put the three nominations to a vote. “Let’s vote on it.”

In an effort to force Tuberville’s hand, Democrats had said they would not put forward the top nominees while the others were still tied up. “There’s an old saying in the military: Leave no one behind,” Senate Armed Services Chairman Jack Reed said in July.

But in a frustrated speech in the Senate on Wednesday, Mr. Schumer said he had no other choice.

“Senator Tuberville is using them as pawns,” Schumer said of the nominees.

The votes come as a large number of military officers have spoken out about the harm the delays are doing to service members. While Mr. Tuberville’s duties are aimed at all generals and flag officers, they have a career impact for the younger rising officers in the Army. Until every general or admiral is confirmed, this blocks the opportunity for a lower-ranking officer to ascend.

That affects salaries, pensions, lifestyles and future assignments – and in some areas where the private sector will pay more, it becomes harder to convince those highly skilled young leaders to stay.

“Senator Tuberville’s continued hold on hundreds of our nation’s military leaders endangers our national security and military readiness. It is long past time to confirm the more than 300 other military nominees,” Mr. Austin said, noting that he would “continue to personally work with members of Congress in both parties until all of these well-qualified, apolitical officials are confirmed .”

Mr. Tuberville said he has not spoken to Mr. Austin about the holds since July.

The blockade has frustrated members on both sides of the aisle and it is still unclear how the larger impasse will be resolved. Mr. Schumer did not say whether he would bring up additional nominations.