The confirmation hearing is set for March 26 on the nomination of Ashton Carter, Harvard physicist and former Clinton Administration assistant secretary of defense for international security policy, to become the new Pentagon weapons czar, replacing John Young. President Obama formally nominated Carter on March 18, having signaled his intent to nominate him late last month.
The design of the launch facilities for the Air Force’s new Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile are likely to undergo major revision, posing yet another challenge for the much-delayed and over-budget program to modernize the land-based component of America’s nuclear triad, officials said.