Obama nominates woman to lead Air Force

[IDemo]

Source: MSNBC

A former assistant secretary of defense and defense industry executive could become the Air Force’s next secretary, the White House announced Thursday.

President Obama nominated Deborah Lee James, who if confirmed would be the second woman to ever lead the Air Force. James would replace Michael Donley, who stepped down in June after holding the position for five years.

“Deborah’s strong record of public service and leadership in the private sector makes her uniquely qualified to be my nominee for secretary of the Air Force,” Obama said in a statement. “I look forward to working with her to keep our Air Force the very best in the world and to keep faith with our extraordinary Air Force personnel and their families.”

Obama’s nomination comes as the military at large deals with a growing controversy of sexual assault. Lt. Col. Jeff Krusinski, an Air Force officer tasked with sexual assault prevention, was arrested in May and charged with sexual battery for allegedly attacking a woman in a suburban Virginia parking lot.

Read more: http://tv.msnbc.com/2013/08/02/obama-nominates-woman-to-lead-air-force/

[hunter]

1. There's a lot of right wing Christian Fascist rot and corruption in the Air Force...

... my first choice would be to throw the bad apples out and disperse the rest of Air Force among the Navy and Army.

Do you do business with a guys who have "The Fish" in their Yellow Page ads? I don't. It's almost a sure sign they'll try to cheat you if you are not one of them.

Nevertheless all the military services need to do much, much more to halt sexual abuse.

I know a guy whose life in the Air Force was hell because some of his mannerisms were "gay" and he was comfortable with women. The defense of our nation lost something when he was discharged because in a time of catastrophe this extremely intelligent guy would have outperformed a dozen Christian-fascist-rapist morons.

My grandfather was a major in the Army Air Force of World War II. I think the creation of a separate Air Force with nukes was a bad idea.

Too many of these assholes thought it was God who gave them The Bomb.

[Dawson Leery]

2. Agreed.

The airforce should be part of the standard military.

[24601]

6. Not a snarky question - but what is the standard military? The Air Force used to be the Army Air

Corps, a semi-independent element within the War Department. The Naval equivalent is the Marine Corps within the Department of the Navy. The National Security Act of 1947 unified four of the seven uniformed services within the Department of Defense. Until that point, the Secretaries of War (Army) and Navy were members of the President's Cabinet.

The other three uniformed services and their (cabinet departments) are the Coast Guard (Homeland Security), Commissioned Corps of the Public Health Service (Health & Human Services) and the Commissioned Corps of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (Commerce).

[Posteritatis]

7. I assumed he meant culturally rather than organizationally. (nt)

[bitchkitty]

3. "The Fish"

or ads that proclaim "Christian business" get a pass from me.

If Christ threw the money lenders out of the temple, I wonder how he'd feel about being used as a marketing tool?

[FiveGoodMen]

4. "If Jesus came back and saw what's going on in his name

he'd never stop throwing up."

From the movie 'Hannah and Her Sisters'

[Tx4obama]

5. Statement from the White House

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release
August 01, 2013

President Obama Announces his Intent to Nominate Deborah Lee James as Secretary of the Air Force

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, President Obama announced his intent to nominate Deborah Lee James as Secretary of the Air Force.

President Obama said, “Deborah’s strong record of public service and leadership in the private sector makes her uniquely qualified to be my nominee for Secretary of the Air Force. I look forward to working with her to keep our Air Force the very best in the world and to keep faith with our extraordinary Air Force personnel and their families.”

President Obama announced his intent to nominate Deborah Lee James as Secretary of the Air Force:

Deborah Lee James, Nominee for Secretary of the Air Force, Department of Defense
Deborah Lee James is President of the Technology and Engineering Sector at Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), a position she has held since 2013. From 2004 to 2013, she was the Senior Vice President of the C4IT Business Unit and then the Executive Vice President of Communications and Government Affairs at SAIC. From 2000 to 2001, Ms. James was the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Business Executives for National Security. From 1998 to 2000, she was the Vice President in the International Operations and Marketing division at United Technologies. From 1993 to 1998, Ms. James served as the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs at the Department of Defense. She began her career in national security as a Professional Staff Member in the U.S. House of Representatives on the House Armed Services Committee from 1983 to 1993. Ms. James is currently a committee member of the Defense Department Advisory Committee on Women in the Services, an Advisory Board Member of the Women in Military Service Memorial Foundation’s Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Campaign, and an Advisory Board Member of The Citadel School of Engineering. Ms. James received a B.A. from Duke University and an M.A. from Columbia University.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/08/01/president-obama-announces-his-intent-nominate-deborah-lee-james-secretar

[David Krout]

8. good move nt

[MADem]

9. The service secretaries are the civilian leaders, but this is important nonetheless.

The Air Force has had more problems--particularly at their Academy--than they should.

Hopefully she'll be able to do something about it. It's a mess.

As an ASD she knows how the game is played--there will be very little adjustment time.