Ashton Carter confirmed as defense secretary
The Senate on Thursday confirmed Ashton Carter as the next defense secretary by a vote of 93 to five.
The five senators who voted against Carter were Republicans Roy Blunt of Missouri, John Boozman of Arkansas, Mike Crapo of Idaho, Mark Kirk of Illinois and James Risch of Idaho. Two senators did not vote: Republican Jerry Moran of Kansas and Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat from Nevada.
Earlier in the week, the Senate Armed Services Committee unanimously approved President Obama's nominee. Carter will replace outgoing Pentagon chief Chuck Hagel, making him Mr. Obama's fourth secretary of defense.
Carter was deputy secretary of defense between 2011 and 2013, serving as the Pentagon's chief operating officer under both Hagel and Hagel's predecessor, Leon Panetta. Before that, he'd served in a variety of roles within the Pentagon under Mr. Obama and former President Bill Clinton, along with lengthy stints in academia and the private sector.
As the number two at the Pentagon, Carter helped oversee the department's budget during a period of belt-tightening, and he boasts a deep familiarity with the department and its massive bureaucracy that could be a selling point for his nomination. He stepped down in 2013 after Mr. Obama passed over him to nominate Hagel when Panetta retired.
During his confirmation hearing before the Armed Services committee last week, Carter signaled his support for providing lethal arms to the Ukrainian military to defend the country against Russian-backed rebels, a position increasingly popular among members of Congress. President Obama said in a news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel Monday that it is one of the options on the table, but he has not yet made a decision and will pursue diplomacy with Russia for now.
