President Biden is expected to nominate the assistant commandant of the Marine Corps to lead the service, selecting a senior officer who has led troops in combat as the service attempts to transform itself after two decades of counterinsurgency wars.
Smith, 58, has served as the No. 2 officer in the Marine Corps since October 2021. If confirmed, he will replace Gen. David H. Berger, who has been commandant since July 2019 and sought to reorient the service to an island-hopping force that can better counter China in the Pacific. Smith’s nomination could be disclosed by the White House any day, two officials familiar with the issue said, speaking on the condition of anonymity ahead of an official announcement.
Smith’s selection comes amid a broader remaking of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, as Berger and a couple of other officers retire. Among the other changes expected, Gen. Randy George has been nominated to replace Gen. James McConville as chief of staff of the Army, and Gen. Charles “CQ” Brown Jr., the current chief of staff of the Air Force, has been tapped to replace Army Gen. Mark A. Milley as Joint Chiefs chairman. No nomination has been announced to replace Brown atop the Air Force.
As assistant commandant, Smith has defended the plan, saying that war games and exercises will sharpen the service’s concepts for the future.speaking at a conference hosted by Defense News . “For those who say, ‘You shouldn’t be focused on China,’ China is the pacing threat … but that doesn’t mean you’re not capable of dealing with Russia, North Korea or Iran. It’s that you always go against the fastest runner, and then you hope that the next runner is a little bit slower.”
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