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House Republican Is Choice for Secretary of the Army
President Obama announced on Tuesday that Representative John M. McHugh, a Republican congressman from New York, will be his nominee to be secretary of the Army.
RAYMOND HERNANDEZ
Published: June 2, 2009
WASHINGTON — New York is not thought of as a big military state. But Representative John M. McHugh, who was selected Tuesday to be President Obama’s secretary of the Army, has long stood out among his New York colleagues for his attention to military matters.
The fate of his district, which stretches across the state’s economically beleaguered North Country, has long been tied to the Fort Drum Army post, home to the 10th Mountain Division, whose soldiers have constantly rotated in and out of Afghanistan and Iraq for the past seven years.
He has been one of Fort Drum’s staunchest advocates in Washington, using his seat on the House Armed Services Committee to protect it from closing. He has also been aggressive about working to bring military-related jobs to the 23rd District.
But the efforts of Mr. McHugh, the ranking Republican on the committee, go beyond the parochial concerns of his district. He has been a supporter of spending on major military projects like the Navy’s F-14 fighter, built for years on Long Island, and the Marines’ V-22 Osprey.
He was also among a group of Congressional leaders President Obama personally briefed in February about his plan to withdraw troops from Iraq by 2010. While Mr. McHugh was concerned that the security situation in Iraq was fragile, he said he was reassured by Mr. Obama’s promise of flexibility.
“The president’s objective to withdraw U.S. combat forces from Iraq is one that we should pray for, plan for and work toward,” Mr. McHugh said after the meeting, in a display of the moderate brand politics he is known for.
Mr. McHugh, 60, is part of a vanishing breed in the House: centrist Republicans from Northeastern states. In New York, for instance, there are just three remaining Republicans, including Mr. McHugh, in the state’s 29-member delegation in the House.
President Obama's appointment of Rep. John McHugh (R-NY) as Secretary of the Army is another brilliant political move disguised as bipartisanship--like getting Gov. Jon Huntsman (R-UT) out of the 2012 presidential race by sending him packing to China (as ambassador). Obama can now brag he appointed a Republican to an important job, which is true, but more important, this move will force a special election in NY-23, an R+1 district that the Democrats could never win with McHugh firmly in place but now have an excellent chance of winning. Although the district is upstate, it is slightly less Republican than NY-20, which Democrat Scott Murphy just won in a special election. Also of note is that Obama carried the district with 52% of the vote. If the Democrats can win NY-23, there will only be two Republicans left in the 29-member NY congressional delegation.