WASHINGTON (NNS) -- Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates announced June 8
that he will recommend that President Bush nominate Chief of Naval
Operations Adm. Mike Mullen to replace Marine Gen. Peter Pace as
chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
In a Pentagon news conference, Gates said he also will recommend Marine
Gen. James E. Cartwright for the position of vice chairman. Cartwright
is the commander of U.S. Strategic Command. Navy Adm. Edmund P.
Giambastiani Jr., the current vice chairman, announced his decision to
retire last week.
“I have become well acquainted with Admiral Mullen over the last six
months and believe he has the strategic insight, experience and
integrity to lead America’s armed forces,” Gates said.
Gates said he intended to renominate Pace and Giambastiani but after
consulting with senators of both parties came to the following
conclusions:
"Because General Pace has served as chairman and vice chairman of the
Joint Chiefs of Staff for the last six years, the focus of his
confirmation process would have been on the past rather than the
future,” Gates said.
He said the confirmation process would have the possibility of being quite contentious.
“I am no stranger to contentious confirmations, and I do not shrink
from them,” Gates said. “However, I have decided at this moment in our
history the nation, our men and women in uniform, and General Pace
himself would not be well-served by a divisive ordeal in selecting the
next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.”
Pace will continue to serve as chairman until his term ends Sept. 30. He is the first Marine to hold the position.
Pace, a 1967 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, served as a rifle
platoon leader in Vietnam and commanded at all levels of the Marine
Corps. He was serving as the commander of U.S. Southern Command when
nominated to be the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in 2001.
He took office weeks after the 2001 terrorist attacks in New York and
Washington.
In 2005, he was nominated to be the chairman. The chairman serves as
the principle military advisor to the president, secretary of defense
and the National Security Council.
Mullen is a 1968 graduate of the Naval Academy. He is surface-warfare
qualified and has commanded three ships: USS Noxabee (AOG 56), USS
Goldsborough (DDG 20)and the USS Yorktown (CG 48). As a flag officer he
commanded the George Washington Battle Group and served as the
commander of U.S. 2nd Fleet/NATO Striking Fleet Atlantic.
Gates said that Pace has served as a Marine for more than 40 years.
“He deserves the deepest thanks of the American people for a lifetime
of service to our country and for his leadership,” Gates said. “I have
thoroughly enjoyed working with him, trust him completely, and value
his candor and willingness to speak his mind.
Source and Credits:
http://www.news.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=29965
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