Senate panel approves five Trump Pentagon picks

The Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday moved forward with the nomination for the second highest-ranking military officer in the country.

The committee approved by voice vote the nomination of Air Force Gen. Paul Selva, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to be reappointed to the role for another two years.

The approval quickly followed Selva’s Tuesday confirmation hearing, which touched on a wide range of topics, including transgender troops, the ethics of armed drones, the controversial push to create a new branch of the military dedicated to space and the threat of North Korean missiles.

In addition, the Senate panel by voice vote favorably reported the civilian nominations for David Trachtenberg to be principal deputy undersecretary for policy, Owen West to be assistant secretary for special operations and low-intensity conflict, Ryan McCarthy to be Army undersecretary, and Charles Stimson to be the Department of the Navy general counsel.

McCarthy, a former Army Ranger and Lockheed Martin executive, was nominated in June.    

All the nominations will now go to the full Senate for a vote.