Lloyd Austin Confirmed As Secretary of Defense, Becomes First Black Pentagon Chief - NPR

The Senate confirmed him as defense secretary by a 93-2 vote.

The Senate confirmed him as defense secretary by a 93-2 vote.

Lloyd Austin, a retired four-star Army general, has been confirmed by the Senate, making him the first Black defense secretary in U.S.

The subordination of military power to the civil," Austin, 67, said during his confirmation hearing Tuesday before the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Austin speaks last month in Wilmington, Del., after being formally nominated as defense secretary.

Austin speaks last month in Wilmington, Del., after being formally nominated as defense secretary.

He joins George Marshall, a retired general of the Army nominated in 1950 by President Harry Truman, and retired Marine Gen.

Another challenge facing the new defense secretary are concerns of extremism within the ranks of the military.

"We woke up one day and discovered that we had extremist elements in our ranks and they did bad things," Austin said without providing details