Lloyd Austin

Lloyd Austin
28th United States Secretary of Defense
In office January 22, 2021 – January 20, 2025
President	Joe Biden
Deputy	Kathleen Hicks
Preceded by	Mark Esper
Succeeded by	Pete Hegseth
Commander of United States Central Command
In office March 22, 2013 – March 30, 2016
President	Barack Obama
Preceded by	Jim Mattis
Succeeded by	Joseph Votel
Personal details
Born	Lloyd James Austin III (1953-08-08) August 8, 1953 (age 71) Mobile, Alabama, U.S.
Education	United States Military Academy (BS) Auburn University (MA) Webster University (MBA)
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Army
Years of service	1975–2016
Rank	General
Commands	United States Central Command Vice Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army United States Forces – Iraq Multi-National Corps – Iraq XVIII Airborne Corps 10th Mountain Division 3rd Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment
Battles/wars	Global War on Terrorism War in Afghanistan Iraq War
Awards	Defense Distinguished Service Medal (5) Army Distinguished Service Medal (4) Silver Star Defense Superior Service Medal (2) Legion of Merit (2)

Lloyd James Austin III (born August 8, 1953) is an American retired four-star general. He was the 28th United States Secretary of Defense from 2021 to 2025 during the Joe Biden administration. He was an Army officer and was the 12th commander of United States Central Command (CENTCOM). Austin was the first Black commander of CENTCOM.^[1]

On December 7, 2020, Austin was nominated by President-elect Joe Biden to be Secretary of Defense.^[2] His nomination was confirmed by the United States Senate on January 22, 2021 which made him the first Black Secretary of Defense in American history.^[3]

In early January 2024, Austin was hospitalized in Walter Reed National Military Medical Center after having surgery.^[4] The surgery was kept private and was made public a few days later to much controversy.^[5] On January 9, 2024, it was revealed that Austin had surgery to treat prostate cancer and had a urinary tract infection.^[6]

1. ↑ MacAskill, Ewen (March 22, 2013). "General Lloyd Austin picked for top job at US Central Command". The Guardian. Archived from the original on February 9, 2017. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
2. ↑ Cooper, Helene; Martin, Jonathan (2020-12-08). "Biden Plans to Tap Lloyd Austin, Former Iraq Commander, as Defense Secretary". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-12-08.
3. ↑ O’brien, Connor. "Austin confirmed as first Black defense secretary". POLITICO. Retrieved 2021-01-22.
4. ↑ "White House's NSC didn't know of Austin's hospitalization for 3 days". Politico. January 6, 2024.
5. ↑ "Pentagon keeps Austin's hospitalization under wraps for days". Reuters. January 5, 2024.
6. ↑ "Lloyd Austin: Pentagon reveals US Defence Secretary had prostate cancer surgery". BBC. January 9, 2024. Retrieved January 9, 2024.