Senate lawmakers eye hearing next week for Air Force secretary: report

The Senate Armed Services Committee could hold a nomination hearing for President Trump’s pick for Air Force secretary as early as next week, Defense News reported.

Trump named former Rep. Heather Wilson (R-N.M.) for the post in January, and on Thursday, committee Chairman John McCain (R-Ariz.) said lawmakers had received her official nomination paperwork from the White House.

That step means the committee can more forward with a confirmation hearing, possibly as soon as next week, according to Defense News.

{mosads}Wilson remains the only official nominee in place for the military branches. Army Secretary nominee Vincent Viola and Navy Secretary nominee Philip Bilden both withdrew from consideration last month. They both have vast financial holdings, which would have made it difficult to meet Pentagon requirements against conflicts of interest.

Defense Secretary James Mattis also pulled his pick for undersecretary for policy, Anne Patterson, earlier this month, after the White House implied it would not fight a likely battle for Senate confirmation

Wilson, 56, graduated from the Air Force Academy and earned master’s and doctoral degrees as a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University. She served in Congress from 1998 to 2009 and is currently the president of the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology.

Wilson does not come without baggage. It was found in 2013 that a company she ran collected nearly $500,000 from the Energy Department’s facilities with no evidence it actually did the work. Wilson denied the charges but reportedly repaid most of the money. 

McCain told Defense News he was unaware of that past issue, while Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) said in a statement that she would ask Wilson whether she would prioritize cuts to government waste.