Openly gay man nominated to lead Army
WASHINGTON – In a first for the Pentagon, President Barack Obama will nominate Eric Fanning as secretary of the Army, making him the first openly gay civilian to head a U.S. military service.
Fanning, 47, who must be confirmed by the Senate, has held a series of high-profile posts at the Pentagon after a career in public service and TV journalism. He was named acting undersecretary of the Army in June after a stint as special assistant to Defense Secretary Ash Carter.
The nomination is the latest and arguably most symbolic move by the Obama administration to lift historic barriers against women and gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals seeking to serve in the U.S. military.
His selection was applauded by gay rights groups that have fought for years to see the Pentagon open its ranks. Critics seized on the nomination as a sign that the White House is more concerned with political correctness than leadership of the nation’s largest military branch.
If confirmed, Fanning would head an Army that faces sharp reductions in troop levels, budget cuts from Congress and fears of fresh conflict in the Middle East after more than a decade of grueling wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Fanning, who has never served in uniform, is expected to support efforts to build a leaner, more high-tech Army, which Carter called “the force of the future.”
Born and raised in Michigan, Fanning graduated from Dartmouth College. He worked for the House Armed Services Committee, at the Pentagon and then at the White House in the 1990s before he became an associate producer at CBS News.
From 2001 to 2007, he worked for a group called Business Executives for National Security, then became deputy director of a commission focused on preventing proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
His star rose sharply after he joined the Obama administration in 2009 as undersecretary of the Navy. He was named acting secretary of the Air Force in 2013, and then undersecretary of the Air Force. In March, he was named Carter’s chief of staff.
Under Carter, the military has sped up efforts to integrate women into combat and other roles previously reserved for men. The military services are poised to allow women to serve in most front-line combat jobs, including special operations forces, as early as this fall.
If confirmed, Fanning would work closely with the Army’s highest-ranking uniformed officer, Gen. Mark Milley, who has held the post since August.
Their immediate task is to fight for the budget. Under congressionally mandated cuts, the Army is set to shrink to 450,000 troops by 2018 – its smallest size since World War II.