Retired Gen. Lloyd Austin, once viewed as a long-shot candidate to be President-elect Joe Biden’s defense secretary, is now considered a leading contender for the position, according to three people with knowledge of the discussions.
Biden still has not settled on a Pentagon chief two weeks after announcing members of his national security team. Although Michèle Flournoy, who was widely seen as Hillary Clinton’s choice to be defense secretary had she won the election in 2016, was initially viewed as the frontrunner for the job, Biden has been under growing pressure to nominate a Black person to be his defense secretary.
In recent days, Austin, the former commander of U.S. Central Command, has emerged as a top-tier candidate, although Biden is also considering former Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson for the job, the people said.