Stalled military nominees leave a Pentagon void

Stalled military nominees leave a Pentagon void The delay in confirming high-level officials occurs as the U.S. tries to extricate itself from a war in the Middle East. 09/24/2026 04:45 AM EDT Senators, bound by partisan politics and a legislative backlog, are unlikely to fill any senior Pentagon vacancies before the end of the year — leaving a dearth of top officials as the Defense Department engages in a prolonged war and grapples with a looming budget crisis. Open leadership posts include the top civilian leaders in the Army and Navy as well as the Army’s top general. But more could open up after the midterm elections if they lead to an incoming Democratic Congress. The lack of confirmed officials threatens to influence everything from the development of a Navy battleship to artificial intelligence guidelines and equipment choices for a future fighting force. “If you have individuals that are simply acting, then they have less of a relationship with Congress,” said Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), who sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee. That “means less support from Congress when things get tight.” President Donald Trump is counting on a Republican Senate to jam through his picks for high-profile Pentagon vacancies during the lame-duck session. But the post-election calendar is already packed with unfinished budget and policy measures, which could push difficult confirmation fights off the table. And the process will only be further upended if Trump’s party is swept out of power in the midterms, leaving them just a few weeks to notch conservative wins that will be tossed aside in a Democratic Congress. “I am not concerned about the Army and Navy functioning on a daily or weekly basis, but I am concerned that these leadership gaps will delay important strategic decisions,” said Brad Bowman, a former national security adviser to Republican senators. “And given the large and growing threats we confront, this is not a great time to be delaying strategic decisions.” Civilian vacancies often pile up at the Pentagon due to high turnover and lengthy delays in the confirmation process. But leaving top posts in both the civilian and uniform ranks without permanent leaders could put plans for those services in limbo, as acting officials rarely have the same mandate as confirmed leaders to pursue major initiatives. High-level military roles are usually filled expeditiously by senators. But the chamber is scheduled to leave for its preelection break in early October, and will return to town in November more focused on addressing appropriations bills and finalizing the annual defense policy legislation. “This is going to be hard,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. “I would hope we can get to the point where we can confirm some of these people. But right now, the calendar is working against them.” Democrats also are likely to slow down any confirmation work because of concerns over the Iran war and the Pentagon’s adversarial stance towards congressional oversight work. “I voted for some of Trump’s Cabinet members early in the administration, and I can’t think of one that I don’t regret voting for at this point,” said Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), who also sits on the military committee. “It’s going to be really hard for me to get there on anyone in the future.” The White House has named a nominee for only one of the three open posts: Hung Cao, the acting Navy secretary, who Trump picked to take over the role on a permanent basis. Cao’s confirmation will be particularly problematic because he needs a waiver from both chambers in order to serve in the role. He retired from the service in 2021, and federal law requires a seven-year waiting period before former military members can be confirmed to several top civilian Pentagon jobs. A waiver would require 60 votes in the Senate, but Democrat lawmakers have said they won’t consider such a plan until Cao testifies in front of both chambers. They want him to answer questions about controversial past comments he made as well as the Navy’s role in the Iran war. Senate Armed Services Chair Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) told reporters this month that he supports Cao’s nomination but conceded that getting the necessary waiver could be difficult. Committee member Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) said she is looking forward to meeting with Cao to discuss his priorities but said, “I haven’t been excited about the last two waivers I voted for.” The White House has not named nominees for the other two open posts. Defense Department officials have floated Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell as a possible pick for the Army secretary post, but Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) has already publicly stated he won’t support him — or any other names tied too closely with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. “What Hegseth needs are people who are less likely to repeat his sentences and some independence,” Tillis said. “And I don’t think Parnell brings that sort of upward feedback that he needs.” The Army chief of staff job has been without a confirmed leader since April 2, when Gen. Randy George was forced out of the role. Officials have discussed Army vice chief of staff Gen. Christopher LaNeve as his replacement, but the White House has declined so far to formally nominate him. Mark Satter contributed to this report.