*If President-elect Joe Biden’s Secretary of Defense nominee gets confirmed, he’ll make history as the first Black person to lead the Pentagon.
Retired Gen. Lloyd Austin comes with a list of decorated achievements a mile long. He was the Army’s vice chief of staff and also led Central Command, which oversees military operations in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan.
Austin is one of a relatively few Black Army officers who have commanded combat units, which is the main pipeline to the highest commands in the military. He’s also a decorated combat veteran, having been awarded the Silver Star, the nation’s third-highest award for valor.
Below, get to know Gen. Austin through his remarks on the 2015 Mission First Project, an interview with Roland Martin and remarks during his retirement ceremony in 2016.
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