Penciled In

The Senate Armed Services Committee has scheduled a confirmation hearing for Gen. James Amos, who has been nominated by President Obama to be the next commandant of the Marine Corps, on Sept. 21 at 9:30 am.

The exact timing of the transition between current commandant Gen. James Conway and Amos has been a matter of speculation for some time. In March, sources told Inside the Navy that a confirmation hearing was expected this summer and that the new commandant was slated to take over in the September timeframe.

But at a press conference last month, when asked when he would retire, Conway answered, “You do not presume the Senate in my job.”

Sources told Inside the Navy last week that the Marines tentatively planned for Conway's retirement in late October, about 30 days after Amos' confirmation hearing, assuming the Senate approves Amos, but they hadn't yet received the go-ahead from the Senate for a late September hearing.

The transition should pave the way for changes in the Marine Corps that are currently on hold. Lt. Gen. George Flynn briefed the upper leadership of the Marine Corps and Navy in the spring about the Ground Tactical Vehicle Strategy he was tasked with completing, but in June, InsideDefense.com learned that the strategy would not be publicly released until after Conway stepped down. Then in August, Navy Undersecretary Robert Work announced that the Corps would complete a force structure review by the end of the year. Last week, sources told ITN that the vehicle strategy is not likely to be released until after the force structure review is complete.

The confirmation hearing is slated to take place in room SD-G50 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building.