Fanning, who must still be confirmed by the Senate, has been a specialist on defense and national security issues for more than 25 years in Congress and the Pentagon. Army secretary is a high-ranking position that works alongside the Army general, a position Gen. Mark Milley took over in August, the Washington Post reported. Prior to that, Fanning served as chief of staff for Defense Secretary Ashton Carter. He temporarily served as acting Secretary of the Air Force several years ago, before the current secretary was approved. The Obama administration has overhauled internal policies to provide benefits to same-sex partners, appointed gay men and lesbians to the executive branch and the federal bench and ended the 18-year ban on gays serving openly in the military.
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Fanning served as deputy undersecretary of the Navy and its deputy chief management office from 2009 to 2013.
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Barack Obama said Friday that he will nominate longtime Pentagon official Eric Fanning to be the Army’s new secretary.
If sequestration returns in fiscal 2016, which starts October . 1, the Army could be forced to cut an additional 30,000 soldiers.
If approved, he would lead the service at a time where the Army is looking at cutting an additional 40,000 soldiers from its ranks under a tight budget environment as the country faces numerous threats from theaters all around the world.
Plans to downsize the Army were finalized before Russia’s provocative actions in Eastern Europe, including its annexation of the Crimea in Ukraine and the mobilization of thousands of troops along Russia’s western border, unnerving America’s North Atlantic Treaty Organisation allies in the region.
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Fanning also could find himself working closely with Murphy again if both men are confirmed.
