Hoo boy, a lot of Conservatives, especially pro-war hawks, are not gonna like this development one bit:

President-elect Joe Biden is expected to nominate retired four star Army General Lloyd Austin to become Defense Secretary. He'll be the first Black man to hold that role if approved by the U.S. Senate. 

Oh, yeah! I can hear the grousing and gnashing of teeth now.

Onward and upward for our people!

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Well, the good general has been nominated and introduced to the nation. And already, Democrats who claimed that they like him are  going to oppose a waiver that would allow the General to head the Defense Department. I bet a number of Republicans say the same thing.

At issue is a waiver from Congress that would allow the General, who retired in 2016, to take a job that is reserved for a civilian. In order to avoid needing a waiver. Gen. Austin had to be retired for at least seven years.

People in this country demand civilian leadership of the Defense Department. As if Biden is as crazy and incompetent as Trump. 

Sure, a double standard is being applied here, but why didn't Biden just select a civilian? This was an easy battle to avoid.

I do not know why Biden failed to choose a civilian. But it might have something to do with trying to find a competent and acceptable civilian who is immune to criticism from Israel.  

While a POTUS ultimately makes the big foreign policy decisions, Israel is a constant thorn in the side of the U.S. government because of its incessant demands more aid and political cover for its assassinations and attacks against its neighbors.

Picking a fight like this spells trouble for the incoming Biden administration.