Washington: The US Senate May 13 confirmed Troy Meink, a longtime fixture of the space world, to lead the US Air Force and Space Force as their top civilian official. Approved in a 74-25 vote, Meink is the final service secretary nominee to move through the confirmation process, following Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and Navy Secretary John Phelan.
Meink, most recently the principal deputy director for the National Reconnaissance Office, is a relative anomaly amongst President Donald Trump’s picks for top Defence Department leaders, having an extensive history of working within the US government, including as the deputy undersecretary of the Air Force for Space during the Obama administration.
Although his nomination was never imperilled, several Democratic senators repeatedly voiced concerns about claims, that SpaceX founder Elon Musk had recommended Meink for the job after Meink, in his NRO role, helped push a satellite contract toward SpaceX.
In a letter to Meink, Senators. Tammy Duckworth, and Elizabeth Warren, said the report raised “incredibly serious allegations of misconduct and favoritism” and asked Meink to provide information about his relationship to Musk and SpaceX.
In written answers to questions from Warren, Meink later disclosed that Musk had been present at his job interview with Trump, but did not ask any questions of the nominee. Meink also said that to his knowledge, Musk played no role in his selection as the Air Force secretary nominee and that the billionaire did not make any requests of Meink in return.
During his confirmation hearing in March, Meink largely fielded questions about military installations in lawmakers’ states and pledged to ensure that the Space Force gets the talent and technologies it needs as it expands in size. He pointed to space control and counter-space systems as two areas in need of further investment and said he would also focus on ensuring technological priorities are acquired quickly enough to meet threats.
