Senate confirms Trump’s pick for defense secretary
While he received broadbipartisan backing, several Democratic presidential hopefuls including Sens.Kirsten Gillibrand, Kamala Harris, Cory Booker, Amy Klobuchar and ElizabethWarren voted against Esper who had been Army Secretary and had briefly served asthe acting secretary of defense after Trump's initial pick to replaceMattis, PatrickShanahan's nomination dramatically imploded last month.
Following his confirmationvote Trump is expected to formally appoint Esper later on Tuesday and aPentagon spokesman told reporters a swearing in ceremony is expected Tuesdayevening.
Esper, a former army officerand West Point classmate of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also worked as asenior staffer on Capitol Hill.
Though he received broadbipartisan support he has received somecriticism fromat least one Democratic lawmaker over his ties to Raytheon, a major defensecontractor, where he worked as a lobbyist.
Esper will be taking over atthe Pentagon amid a series of global challenges, including mounting tensionswith Iran over several incidents in the Strait of Hormuz.
The US military said onThursday it had downed anIranian drone that had posed a threat to the USS Boxer and on Friday Iranianforces seized aUK-flagged tanker.
The US has been seeking tobuild a coalition of like-minded countries to help ensure maritime security inthe region but no countries have publicly agreed to join that effort.
On Tuesday, Britain announcedit would be ramping up its military presence in the Gulf and working withEuropean allies to establish a joint maritime protection force to patrol it.
He will also be seeking tocontinue refocusing the Defense Department's attention on the challenge ofconfronting Russia and China while also continuing to oversee counter-terrorismcampaigns in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria.
Amid these competing demands,Esper will be tasked with helping to prioritize and assign US military forcesto various locations around the globe while simultaneously seeking to maintainrelationships with allies worldwide.
The unprecedented length oftime without a permanent secretary of defense had been cited as a problem byboth Republican and Democrat lawmakers as well as veterans of the DefenseDepartment.
A large number of senior rolesat the Pentagon continue to lack permanent appointees.
Esper had to step down asacting secretary following his formal nomination due to regulations. Secretaryof the Navy Richard V. Spencer has been performing the acting role as Esperwent through the confirmation process, making him the third consecutive actingdefense secretary since Mattis resigned.
On Tuesday theadministration's formally nominated David Norquist to be Esper's deputy.