"Today, I’m pleased to announce my nominee to be our next Secretary of Defense—Mr. Ash Carter," the White House quoted Obama as saying. "Ash is rightly regarded as one of our nation’s foremost national security leaders."
“I think it’s fair to say that, Ash, in you one-year attempt at retirement from public service, you failed miserably,” he joked.
The president also noted that Carter is a physicist, "which means that he is one of the few people who actually understand how many of our defense systems work”.
Carter served as deputy secretary of defense under Leon Panetta and Chuck Hagel. He has served in various capacities for 11 secretaries of defense, including a three year stint as Assistant Secretary of Defense for Global Strategic Affairs under in the administration of former US President Bill Clinton. Unlike Hagel, he does not have any military experience.
Obama’s Defense Secretary nominee now has to pass confirmation by the Senate.
“It’s an honor and a privilege for me to be nominated for the position of Secretary of Defense <…> If confirmed in this job, I pledge to you my most candid strategic advice and I pledge also that you will receive equally candid military advice. And finally, to the greatest fighting force the world has ever known, to you, I pledge to keep faith with you,” Carter stated following the president’s announcement.
Last week, Chuck Hagel, who had served as defense secretary since February 2013, announced his resignation. In a Pentagon press briefing Thursday, Hagel said that after candid discussions with Obama they mutually agreed it would be in the best interests of the US to bring in new leadership.
