Trump names acting defense secretary, Hegseth not yet confirmed

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has named an acting defense secretary because his choice to lead the Pentagon, Pete Hegsethhas not yet been confirmed by the Senate.

Robert Salesses, deputy director of the Pentagon’s headquarters service in Washington, will serve as acting secretary of defense, and three other career Department of Defense civilians will serve as acting heads of the Army, Defense Navy and Air Force.

HAS serve at the post Since then, the new Trump administration has needed senior Pentagon leaders who had already been confirmed by the Senate. Salesses is a retired Marine who served in the Gulf War and earned a Bronze Star.

He led the Washington Headquarters Service, which includes all of the Capital Region’s support services, including Facilities Management and the Office of General Counsel as well as other services that support the military branches and leadership from the Pentagon.

Hegseth could see his nomination advanced by the Senate Armed Services Committee as early as Monday, but due to the number of nominees that must be approved, the Senate as a whole may not accept his nomination until the end of the week.

Additionally, Trump nominated Mark Averill, who was administrative assistant to Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth, to become acting secretary. A graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, Averill has been a career civilian since June 2009.

Terence Emmert, who has served as the principal deputy director of technology for mission capabilities, will be the acting secretary of the Navy. He served in the Navy as an aviator and has extensive research and testing experience.

And Gary Ashworth, who is serving in a temporary position as assistant secretary for acquisition, will be the acting secretary of the Air Force. Ashworth spent more than 20 years in the Air Force and led an acquisition squadron during his last assignment.

Trump, in his inaugural address, indicated some of his first the decrees would involve the armyincluding a possible additional deployment to the US-Mexico border to “finish” the construction of the border wall, as well as the elimination of diversity, equity and inclusion training initiatives.

There are currently approximately 2,500 National Guard and reserve forces on active duty at the border. This total does not include Guard troops deployed as part of state National Guard deployments. The U.S. Northern Command, which is in charge of federally ordered troops at the border, said 2,500 troops are currently authorized to remain there.

“Service members provide detection and surveillance, data capture, training, transportation, vehicle maintenance, and warehousing and logistical support for the 12 months. The authorization also includes support of light rotary wing aviation for aerial reconnaissance in support of CBP personnel on the ground,” NORTHCOM said in a statement.

The command “works closely with the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Department of Defense and stands ready to conduct the homeland defense mission.”

There are currently no troops on active duty on the border, but in limited cases some in leadership positions perform some command and control functions.

NBC first announced Saleses’ appointment.