Senate confirms Dunford for second term as JCS chairman

The full Senate this week confirmed by voice vote Gen. Joseph Dunford for a second, two-year term as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

"Gen. Dunford has a long and distinguished career in service to our nation," Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in a Sept. 27 statement. "I am confident in his ability to continue leading our military as our nation faces grave threats from around the globe, including Iran, North Korea and ISIS."

In his renomination hearing before the committee earlier this week, Dunford said the Defense Department is working on a National Defense Strategy that would require between 3 percent and 7 percent annual budget growth for the next five years.

The general said DOD would have to "fundamentally reorder" the National Defense Strategy if Congress cannot authorize and appropriate the necessary budget growth, Inside Defense reported Sept. 26:

"Our plan to date, first and foremost, has highlighted the fact that our capabilities require somewhere between 3 [percent] and 7 percent," he said.

Dunford said DOD is building its five-year budget plan now based on "initial guidance" from Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, who is currently crafting the NDS with a small cadre of advisers. The final NDS is expected early next year.

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