Breaking Barriers: Lisa Franchitti Makes History as the First Woman to Command the US Navy

 

     US President Joe Biden chose Admiral Lisa Franchitti to lead Naval Operations, the highest position in the US Navy, and thus she would be the first woman to hold this position if the Senate approved her nomination.

And after being confirmed in this position, she will also become a member of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, which will also set a precedent, as no woman has ever held the membership of the highest military institution in the United States.

Biden said in a statement that Franchitti is "the second woman in the United States to be awarded the rank of four-star admiral." He praised her career, especially as she led a guided missile destroyer, a squadron of destroyers, and two aircraft carrier groups to intervene.

However, Franchitti's appointment must be approved by the Senate, where Republican members are blocking the appointment of several senior military and diplomatic officials.

This is the case for a series of key appointments in the US Department of Defense, whose endorsement is hampered by Republican Senator Tommy Tuberville, who opposes the Pentagon's policy of providing financial assistance to female soldiers who wish to have an abortion.

Biden said that "what Senator Tuberville is doing is not only wrong, it is dangerous" and endangers national security.

The US Senate has the power to approve the nominations decided by the President of the United States, whether ministerial, military, or even diplomatic and judicial.

Another Republican senator, Rand Paul, has blocked some 60 appointments, including 34 ambassadorial posts.

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said last week that "sensitive positions in Egypt, Israel, Jordan, and Lebanon lack specific ambassadors."

The contentious issue, in this case, is Senator Paul's demand to obtain documents relating to the origin of COVID-19.