On December 7, 2020, Biden announced an important appointment in the new cabinet: retired four-star General Austin replaced the previously widely regarded Fronoi as the new administration's defense secretary. If confirmed by Congress, he will become the first African-American defense secretary in U.S. history, contributing to the construction of a "pluralistic cabinet." What kind of personal resume and characteristics Austin has, why he was able to stand out from the three candidates, and how he will affect the US military strategy in the post-Trump era are all topics that have been widely concerned and discussed by the outside world.
On December 7, 2020 local time, a number of media disclosed that Biden would appoint Lloyd Austin as the new government's defense secretary. As soon as the news came out, Austin himself and the Biden team expressed their reluctance to comment on this, but Biden soon published a signed article entitled "Why I Appointed Austin as Secretary of Defense" in The Atlantic on December 8, and officially announced Austin's appointment at a gathering in Delaware on the 9th. At this point, the suspense of this position, which has a major impact on the national security of the United States and even the security situation of the world, has finally ended, and Austin has unexpectedly replaced the previously widely favored former deputy secretary of defense, Michele Flournoy, who will become the first African-American defense secretary in U.S. history if he can be appointed by Congress.
Pictured: Lloyd Austin, nominated for Biden's cabinet secretary.
Born into a devout Catholic family in Alabama, Lloyd Austin, 67, graduated from the prestigious West Point in 1975 as a second lieutenant platoon commander in the U.S. Army's 3rd Infantry Division in Germany. He then completed the Advanced Course in Infantry Command (IOAC) at Fort Bragg Army Base on home soil and was reassigned to the 82nd Airborne Division. During this period, he not only served as a company-level military officer, but also assisted in brigade command. In the 1980s, he served in the 82nd Airborne Division, the Indiana Army Recruitment Battalion, the 10th Mountain Division, and earned a master's degree in education from Auburn University before returning to West Point as a company-level tactical instructor. In 1993, he returned to the 82nd Airborne Division as a battalion commander and participated in Operation SAFE HAVEN in 1994, which was designed to transfer Central American refugees stranded at Guantánamo to shelters in Panama. In 1997, he was promoted to brigade commander and two years later transferred to the Pentagon, where he served in the department responsible for coordinated operations between the arms.
From 2001 to 2003, Austin first participated in Operation Iraqi Freedom as deputy commander of the 3rd Infantry Division, responsible for the movement and transportation of troops in the initial phase of the operation. He was later transferred to the 10th Mountain Division as commander of the 180th Combined Task Force and participated in the Afghan war with his unit until 2005. After his deployment in Afghanistan, he became a member of U.S. Central Command and spent most of his time rebuilding and maintaining security in Iraq. In 2010, Austin was promoted to commander of the US forces in Afghanistan, during which he promoted the gradual withdrawal of US troops and directly promoted the withdrawal of more than 50,000 military personnel; On the one hand, it insists that the US military needs to maintain more than 10,000 personnel in Afghanistan after 2011. In December 2011, he evacuated home with all the personnel of the U.S. Command in Iraq to take over as deputy commander of the U.S. Army.
Pictured: Austin, commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, accompanied then-U.S. Defense Secretary Panetta on an inspection tour in 2011.
In 2013, in recognition of his years of deep work in the Middle East, Austin was appointed commander of U.S. Central Command, overseeing U.S. military operations in the Middle East. In addition to the political turmoil left by the Arab Spring, the main problem he faced during his tenure was the rise and rise of the Islamic State. Under his impetus, the United States has focused its fight against the Islamic State in Iraq to ensure that the strategic interests seized by the United States in Iraq are not affected.
Austin was a low-key man known as the "Invisible Commander" during his tenure and rarely spoke about military policy in media coverage and rarely appeared at conferences and academic seminars. But at a hearing in 2015, he acknowledged that U.S. efforts to nurture the Syrian opposition to counter ISIS had not worked. In 2016, Austin retired from command of Central Command with the rank of four-star general and subsequently joined the famous arms dealer Raytheon Company as a consultant. In addition, he has worked as a consultant for several large corporations and runs his own consulting firm.
Pictured: U.S. Central Command badge.
"Austin has served in the U.S. Army for more than 40 years, meeting challenges with extraordinary skill and deep personal character. He was a tried and tested soldier and leader. I have fought alongside him for a long time on the front lines and in the White House war room. I have also sought his advice, witnessed his orders, and admired his composure and other good character. He was a staunch patriot. Biden wrote in a signed article in The Atlantic.
Because the Biden team previously promised to create a "diverse" and highly representative cabinet, ethnic identity is bound to add a lot to Austin. Biden wrote in a signed article: "[Austin's appointment] will be another milestone in our cause of breaking through the (ethnic) ceiling and maintaining American security." As an African-American, he repeatedly broke the ethnic "ceiling" and not only became the first African-American theater commander of the United States, but also became one of six African Americans to be awarded the rank of four-star general, which is quite rare in the racially conservative U.S. Army. "General Austin is a Southerner with an impeccable military career, and he is set to be an excellent Secretary of Defense." POLITICO NEWS QUOTED A MISSISSIPPI CONGRESSMAN CLOSE TO BIDEN AS SAYING.
Austin was able to stand out from the three candidates both because of his excellent military resume and because he was trusted by Biden, as well as because of his ethnic background and personal character.
Biden has a deep personal connection to Austin. On the one hand, the two have worked together in the Obama administration, and Biden said in a signed article that he went to Iraq twice in late 2011 on the orders of Obama President Ma to inspect the withdrawal and handover of US troops, and in the process met Austin, then commander of US forces in Iraq. He spoke highly of Austin's work, saying he "has front-line experience, knows the cost of war, and knows how to keep Americans safe." On the other hand, CNN quoted a person close to Biden as saying that Biden's late eldest son, Beau Biden, served in the U.S. Command in Iraq under Austin, and the two worked closely together at work and maintained a good personal relationship after Beau Biden returned to the United States.
Pictured: Austin and then-Vice President Joe Biden at Fort Bragg military base in 2009.
Most importantly, throughout his 41-year military career, Austin has been recognized as a reliable soldier and a brilliant commander. After graduating from the West Point Military Academy, he started as a platoon commander at the most basic level, experienced the experience of chief officers at the company, battalion, regiment, brigade, and division levels, worked deeply in local training bases and military academies for many years, and participated in overseas military operations and non-military deployments many times, and has rich experience in command and combat. Serving in the Central Command, which is the most critical geopolitical position, gave him a deeper and more intuitive understanding of the military strategy and diplomatic operation of the United States. Of all the defense secretaries since the Trump administration, his military resume is second only to Marine-turned-Mattis, who happens to be Austin's former head of Central Command.
In addition, the first major task facing the Biden administration after taking office is to control the epidemic of the new crown epidemic. As the only armed force in the world that can carry out all-weather and full-spectrum deployment tasks, the US military has strong logistical support capabilities and will certainly play a leading role in assisting the United States in epidemic prevention at home and abroad. ACCORDING TO POLITICO, THIS IS ALSO ONE OF AUSTEN'S STRENGTHS. He served as deputy commander for army deployment of the 3rd Infantry Division in Operation Iraqi Freedom from 2001-2003, in the process earning a Silver Star for his command; When he was the commander of the US forces in Iraq, he coordinated and commanded the orderly evacuation of tens of thousands of military personnel back to China, which undoubtedly shows that Austin has rich experience in logistics and logistics scheduling, which will provide strong support for the army's future epidemic prevention work.
Pictured: U.S. military transport ships in the Iraq War
As soon as the news of Austin's appointment was released, it caused a fierce reaction in public opinion, partly because he was not the first choice for secretary of defense in the outside world; On the other hand, he has only been retired for four years, which does not meet the civilian principle of the law, which means that active duty personnel can only serve as defense minister after at least seven years of retirement.
Mainstream media in the United States, including CNN and The Washington Post, have chosen the word "unexpected" to describe Austin's eventual victory. According to CNN, three defense secretary candidates made it to the runoffs: former Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson (African-American male), former Undersecretary of Defense Michele Flournoy (white female) and former Central Command Commander Lloyd Austin (African-American male). Among them, it was widely predicted that Michelle Fronoy would have a higher probability of winning or becoming the first female defense secretary in U.S. history.
The three defense candidates who made it to the finals, from left to right: Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson (African-American male), former Undersecretary of Defense Michele Flournoy (white female) and former Central Command Commander Lloyd Austin (African-American male).
Fronoy is a career civilian officer with no military experience. She has been engaged in strategic research and analysis, taught at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government, served in both the Clinton and Obama administrations, is considered a senior Pentagon official, has a deep network of contacts, and most senior Democratic Party officials are strong supporters. Just hours before Biden announced his choice for defense secretary, Adam Smith, the Democratic chairman of the House Defense Committee, publicly backed Fronoi, saying that "in order to continue reforms, [the new secretary of defense] needs to have some understanding of the bureaucracy and the operation of the Pentagon, and Michelle Fronoy has ... This is not to say that others are not qualified for the position. But I think we already have a clear choice (i.e. Fronoi) and she is currently the most qualified candidate. ”
However, there are still some unavoidable controversies in Fronoi's resume, which may also greatly reduce her chances of becoming defense minister. For one, she has been described as a "quintessential liberal hawk," a senior official in the Obama administration who has strongly supported a surge in troops in the Middle East, leading some to blame her for the war quagmire of the United States. Second, her longtime tenure as a director of Booz Allen Hamilton, one of the Defense Department contractors, has led some to suspect that her aggressive push to garrison troops in the Middle East and arms sales to countries such as Saudi Arabia are linked to the company's commercial interests.
On December 7, 2011, Michelle Flournoy, then U.S. undersecretary of defense, met with his Chinese counterpart, Ma Xiaotian, at the Bayi Building in Beijing. Source: Asia Times AT
Although Austin's inauguration is also in line with the Biden team's commitment to a "diversity cabinet," in the view of some media outlets, appointing a female defense secretary is no less significant than appointing an African-American male defense secretary. According to a Washington Post report, West Point admitted its first female cadet 100 years later than its first African-American cadet; And with fewer than 80 senior female officials in the Pentagon's history, the appointment "proves that gender is a bigger barrier than ethnicity." According to POLITICO, a source revealed that the Biden team has come under pressure in recent days and has to choose between two African-American candidates.
In addition, Austin's discharge from the army is less than 7 years, which is not just a simple procedural issue in the eyes of the outside world. Jim Golby, a senior fellow at the Clements Center for National Security at the University of Texas at Austin and a former special adviser to Vice President Biden and Pence, wrote straight to the point in a New York Times op-ed: "Sorry, General Austin, a recently retired military member should not be secretary of defense." Gorby noted that while Biden could secure Austin's inauguration by seeking a congressional waiver, that immunity has only been used twice in history. Although Trump's first defense secretary, Mattis, took office through immunity, if the two exemptions were so close in time, it would inevitably undermine the legal system and political conventions of the United States. In addition, CNN, the Washington Post and other media, which have always been liberal, are also skeptical, believing that the Pentagon, after experiencing the chaos and arbitrariness of Trump, should usher in a leader who supports the law and rebuilds traditions, so as to embark on the road to restore "normalcy".
Since Mattis resigned in 2019, the Pentagon under Trump has been criticized by all walks of life, saying that it has gradually become a "tool of execution" of the president's personal will, and the "Black Lives Matter" movement in June this year has triggered a long-standing feud between the White House and the Pentagon's top management. In early November, after the general election was basically lost, the Trump administration's first "big move" was to remove the already unpleasant Esper and reshuffle the top level of the Department of Defense, which added many obstacles to the Biden administration's implementation of its defense strategy.
In early November, Trump cronies who were promoted to senior Defense Department officials.
While it is still unknown whether Austin will be able to obtain congressional immunity, if so, whether it will damage the Pentagon's "civilian tradition" is only speculation. But Austin, who has extensive contacts in military and political circles, is bound to rebuild the Pentagon team in personnel and gradually restore the rules and order that Trump has broken.
In addition to personnel organization, as the only "supreme authority in the military" other than the president, Austin's inauguration is closely related to the adjustment of the "post-Trump" US national defense strategy. In the four years since the Trump administration took office, with the evolution of the international pattern, the strategic focus of US national defense has completed the transformation from non-traditional security threats such as the "war on terror" to traditional security threats dominated by geopolitical games. The United States and Russia have returned to confrontation after the Crimea issue and the Syrian issue, and the strategic tacit understanding between China and the United States of "fighting without breaking" has gradually broken down. As an emphasis and deepening of the Obama administration's "Asia-Pacific rebalance" strategy, the "Indo-Pacific strategy" promoted by the Trump administration has been more thoroughly implemented in containing China's "power expansion" and curbing China's arms development. The two parties have long reached a consensus on the evolution of this strategic logic.
Compared to Fronoy, who has a clear "hawkish" tendency, Austin, who has long commanded the war on terror in the Middle East, is less aggressive in the face of traditional threats, "He has been on the front line and knows how much the real cost of war is... He personally informed the families of the fallen soldiers. CNN quoted a source as commenting on Austin, suggesting that nearly half a century of military career would prompt Austin to take war more cautiously and rationally. But Oriana Skylar Mastro, an international security expert at Stanford University, thinks Austin may be a "safe choice" but ill-equipped to deal with "the greatest threat to U.S. national security," namely China's "military expansion." Austin's military experience, although rich, has become the biggest obstacle to his response to the Chinese threat, because in his decades of military career, he has faced terrorists and rebels, and has not directly dealt with Chinese "threats"; In addition, he has served in the army system, which is not the "first line of defense" against the Chinese threat.
Pictured: A 2015 study by the Brookings Institution entitled "The Middle East in Transition," the first of which is Austin's report, and the right side of the cover is also Austin.
Austin's personality is also far less ostentatious than Mattis, and according to CNN, most officials believe that Austin is not as "power-out" as other four-star generals, and one Pentagon official said that Austin is "just the kind of person who doesn't kick your socks off." And confesses that he doesn't see Austin as a strategist with an independent mind. POLITICO POINTED OUT IN THE REPORT THAT AUSTIN HAS FOUGHT ALONGSIDE ALLIES MANY TIMES WHEN HE WAS THE COMMANDER OF CENTRAL COMMAND, HAS RICH EXPERIENCE IN JOINT OPERATIONS, AND WILL REUNITE THE ALLIES LEFT BEHIND BY THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION. These factors may all have complex and far-reaching implications for the "post-Trump" U.S. national defense strategy.
At the end of a signed article published in The Atlantic, Biden said the United States "must be prepared to meet the challenges of the future, not continue to entangle itself with the wars of the past." We must develop a diplomatic strategy designed to unite allies and revitalize American leadership to lead the world in addressing new global security threats, from the coronavirus pandemic, climate change, nuclear proliferation, to the refugee crisis... And Austin's inauguration as part of the construction of a pluralistic cabinet undoubtedly reflects the true structure of American society... Under his leadership, the Department of Defense will always keep the American people safe in a manner consistent with America's fundamental values and ideals. "Whether Austin can take office smoothly and what changes will occur in the US military strategy in the post-Trump era, we still need to wait and see."