President Barack Obama is expected to nominate Pentagon official Ashton Carter as defense secretary, replacing the embattled Chuck Hagel who resigned last week, according to multiple reports.
The Associated Press reports that Sen. Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma says he was informed of the decision early Tuesday. CNN also is reporting that Carter is the president's choice.
Carter is expected to win Senate confirmation easily in 2015. A White House official said on condition of anonymity that Hagel will join Obama to announce Carter's nomination.
Hagel announced his resignation on Nov. 24 under pressure from the White House and amid disagreements between the Pentagon and the White House over the president's strategy in the latest Middle East war. He will stay in the job until his replacement is confirmed.
Carter, 60, never served in uniform. But the military establishment regarded him as a bold thinker when he served in the Obama administration as deputy Defense secretary, the No. 2 post, and as chief weapons buyer, the No. 3 post. He resigned a year ago.
He was confirmed by unanimous Senate votes for his two previous Pentagon posts and is unlikely to face strong opposition this time.
"I can tell you that whoever [the defense secretary] is, it will be very clear about what the chain of command is and they'll understand that the president of the United States is the commander-in-chief and sits atop the chain of command," White House press secretary Josh Earnest told reporters Thursday when asked about the criticisms of the former defense chiefs.
A New York Times report announcing Hagel's imminent removal included several quotes from unnamed senior Obama aides sniping at the former senator and Vietnam War veteran.
"I support it very strongly," Inhofe said. "I'm very pleased he is going to be our secretary of defense. I can't imagine that he's going to have opposition to his confirmation."
Carter, a former deputy secretary at the Department of Defense, has long been considered a leading candidate for the job to replace Hagel. A spokeswoman for Carter had no immediate comment on the report.
"It's how much grief you want," said Anthony H. Cordesman, a national security expert with the Center for Strategic and International Studies. "There's a confirmation process where anyone with the political profile which the White House wants would run into a buzz saw in the Senate."
"The kinds of stories that have gotten a little more attention in the last couple of weeks about some friction existing between the White House and the Pentagon are not new and not unique to this administration," Earnest said.
Carter served as deputy secretary of defense - the Pentagon's No. 2 job - from late 2011 to late 2013. He left after being passed over for the top job in favor of Hagel. A highly regarded manager, Carter would come in at a time of increased grumbling in Congress about military spending cuts.
Sen. John McCain (R.-Ariz), who will chair the Senate Armed Services Committee come January, has sharply criticized Obama's handling of world affairs but expressed support for the nomination.
Carter would inherit several crises and more than a few difficult operations, including the war against the so-called Islamic State, military efforts to help West Africa battle Ebola and the campaign to stamp out sexual assault in the armed forces.
He would also take over at a time when Republicans have readied an all-out assault on across-the-board spending cuts to military programs.
