Trump Nominates Defense Industry Executive as Army Secretary
July 19 2017 - 9:53PM
Dow Jones News
By Ben Kesling
WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump announced Wednesday he has
nominated a defense industry executive, Mark Esper, to be secretary
of the Army
Mr. Esper is the president's third pick to lead the Army, after
previous choices withdrew due to potential ethical conflicts or
political controversy. Mr. Trump's first nominee for Navy secretary
also withdrew his name from consideration.
Mr. Esper most recently served as a vice president for
government relations at the Raytheon Corp., a major defense
contractor and supplier.
Before his work at Raytheon, Mr. Esper served as a staffer and
aide in Congress, at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce as well as the
chief of staff at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think
tank in Washington, according to a biography released by
Raytheon.
He is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and
was a member of the Army's 101st Airborne Division, where he served
a combat tour in the Gulf War, according to Raytheon.
Mr. Trump's first choice for Army secretary, and his first
choice for Navy secretary, withdrew their names from consideration
citing concerns that their business interests couldn't be
reconciled with ethics requirements in holding the position.
The most recent nominee to drop out of the running was Mr.
Trump's second choice for Army secretary, who withdrew his name
after criticisms by lawmakers and activists over positions he took
on issues including homosexuality and evolution.
Write to Ben Kesling at benjamin.kesling@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 19, 2017 21:38 ET (01:38 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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