Retired Fort Drum General Austin is first Black secretary of defense

Posted: Jan 22, 2021 / 05:23 PM EST / Updated: Jan 22, 2021 / 05:25 PM EST

FILE – In this Sept. 16, 2015, photo, U.S. Central Command Commander Gen. Lloyd Austin III, testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington. Biden will nominate retired four-star Army general Lloyd J. Austin to be secretary of defense. That’s according to three people familiar with the decision who spoke on condition of anonymity because the selection hadn’t been formally announced. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)

WASHINGTON (WWTI) — The U.S. Senate has confirmed the former Fort Drum General to lead the Pentagon.

The Senate has officially confirmed retired General Lloyd Austin to lead Pentagon. This confirmation makes him the nation’s first Black secretary of defense.

Retired General Lloyd J. Austin III, is a retired four-star United States Army general who was the head of the U.S. Central Command.

Throughout his time in the U.S. Army he was assigned to the 10th Mountain Division at Fort Drum, where he served at the S-3 and later executive officer for the 2nd Battalion, 22nd Infantry.

This post has been contributed to by the Associated Press.