Lloyd Austin Biography, Career, Age, Family, Education, Height, and Net Worth.

Who Is Lloyd Austin?

Lloyd Austin is a retired US military and a four-star general. Currently, he is serving as the 28th United States secretary of defense since January 22, 2021.

Moreover, he is the first African American to serve as the United States secretary of defense. Prior to being state secretary, he served as the 12th commander of United States Central Command (CENTCOM) from 2013 to 2016.

In January 2012, he became the 33rd vice chief of staff of the Army from March 2013. In addition, he was the last commanding general of United States Forces – Iraq Operation New Dawn, which ended in December 2011. He was then appointed as the first Black Commander of CENTCOM by President Barack Obama in 2013.

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Austin later retired from the armed services in 2016. After his retirement, he joined the boards of Raytheon Technologies, Nucor, and Tenet Healthcare. Moreover, he was appointed as defense secretary by then-President-elect Joe Biden on December 7, 2020. After his appointment, he was approved by the US Senate on January 22, 2021, by a vote of 93–2, only two senators voted against him.

Career

Army Career

After he graduated from West Point, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant. Moreover, his first assignment was to the 3rd Infantry Division (Mechanized) in Germany.

After this assignment and attendance at the Infantry Officer Advanced Course, Austin was then assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. At Fort Bragg, he was commanding the Combat Support Company, 2nd Battalion (Airborne), 508th Infantry. In addition, he also served as the Assistant S-3 (Operations) for 1st Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division.

Austin was posted to Indianapolis, Indiana, in 1981. Moreover, in Indianapolis, he served as operations commander for the Army Indianapolis District Recruiting Command and eventually led an Army Recruiting Battalion company. Furthermore, after the completion of this job, he enrolled in Auburn University to pursue a master’s degree in education. Furthermore, he was then posted to the Military Academy at West Point, New York. At the Academy, he was serving as a company tactical officer for E-1.

After a while, he came back to the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg in 1993. This time he commanded the 2d Battalion (Airborne), 505th Infantry at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. He eventually became the 82nd Airborne Division’s G-3. In addition. he led the 3rd Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, after graduating from the Army War College.

Furthermore, he also served as Chief, Joint Operations Division, J-3, on the Joint Staff at The Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. This was shortly after brigade command. After that, he served as the Assistant Division Commander for Manoeuvre (ADC-M) of the 3rd Infantry Division (Mechanized) at Fort Stewart, Georgia. As the ADC-M, he was a key figure in the division’s March 2003 invasion of Iraq. In addition, he was awarded a Silver Star for his actions as a commander during the invasion.

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During the Afghanistan War, he was serving as the commanding general of the 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry) and Commander of Combined Joint Task Force 180 from September 2003 to August 2005. In September 2005 he became the chief of staff of the United States Central Command at MacDill AFB in Tampa, Florida.

How Old Is Lloyd Austin?

He was born on August 8, 1953, as of 2021 he is age 67 years old.

Lloyd Austin Family

Who are His Parents?

He was born in Mobile, Alabama, and raised in Thomasville, Georgia. He is the son of Lloyd James and Aletua Taylor Austin. His father was a postal worker, his mother is a native of Mobile.

Does He Have Siblings?

He has five siblings, and he is the fifth born in a family of six.

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Lloyd Austin Education

He attended the United States Military Academy at West Point, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1975. After that, he earned a Master of Arts degree in counselor education from Auburn University’s College of Education in 1986. In addition, he also has a Master of Business Administration in business management from Webster University in 1989. Moreover, he is a graduate of the Infantry Officer Basic and Advanced Courses, the Army Command and General Staff College, and the Army War College.

Lloyd Austin Wife

He is happily married to Charlene Denise Banner Austin. The couple has been married for over forty years. His wife worked as a non-profit administrator and also served as the board of the Military Family Research Institute.

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Lloyd Austin Kids

He has two stepsons

Private Sector

After he retired from the Military, Austin joined the board of Raytheon Technologies, a military contractor, in April 2016. After working for four years as of October 2020, his Raytheon stock holdings were worth around $500,000 and his compensation, including stock, totaled $1.4 million.

Furthermore, on September 18, 2017, he was nominated to Nucor’s board of directors. A few months later he was nominated as an independent director on the board of Tenet Healthcare on May 29, 2018.

Furthermore, Austin also operates a consulting firm and has been a partner at Pine Island Capital, an investment company. The comapany is affiliated with Antony Blinken and Michèle Flournoy.

Secretary of Defense

Nomination and Confirmation

On December 7th, 2020, President Joe Biden announced his intention to appoint Austin as Secretary of Defense. However, concerns were raised in Congress over the nomination’s consequences on civil-military ties. After his appointment, former Secretary of State Colin Powell and former Defense Secretary Robert Gates endorsed Austin’s candidacy. However, Democratic Representative Seth Moulton voted against it.

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Austin was confirmed by the Senate Armed Services Committee on January 19, 2021. Austin was given a seven-year waiver by Congress on January 21 by a 326–78 majority in the House and a 69–27 vote in the Senate. On January 22, 2021, he was confirmed by the Senate with a 93–2 majority. Republican Senators Josh Hawley and Mike Lee were the only ones to vote no.

Austin became the first black secretary of defense after his confirmation and swearing-in later that day. Austin was sworn in by a Defense Department official on January 22, 2021, and was sworn in ceremonially by Vice President Kamala Harris on January 25, 2021.

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Tenure

A few days after taking office as Secretary of Defense, he visited the National Guard deployed to Washington D.C. Austin acclaimed the Guard for protecting the Capitol in the days after the 2021 attack.

During a news conference, he reaffirmed that the National Guard will leave the U.S. Capitol within weeks and that no more requests from federal authorities or politicians would be made to maintain the National Guard’s personnel in the Capitol complex beyond their March departure. Austin would later order the troops to stay until the end of May.

Moreover, as the Secretary of Defence, his primary agenda was the department of defense’s plan, in coordination with Anthony Fauci, the chief medical advisor to the president, to confront the Covid-19 pandemic within the department. He made his first move by calling the members of service to get vaccinated.