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Bush Urges Senate to Confirm Gates as Defense Secretary
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?r=279&c=724858&l=1009&ctl=152C1A9:A6F02AD83191E160D394F542C2AF81879574F7DCC14957C0 US president met
with Robert Gates at White House early Tuesday, ahead of confirmation
hearings on Capitol Hill President Bush is urging the U.S. Senate to
move quickly to confirm Robert Gates as his new defense secretary. As
VOA's Paula Wolfson reports, the president met with Gates at the White
House early Tuesday, shortly before the start of his confirmation
hearings.







President Bush, right, speaks to members of media as Secretary of
Defense nominee Robert Gates, left, looks on, 5 Dec. 2006The president
sent Gates to Capitol Hill with some words of encouragement.

"Bob Gates will be a fine secretary of defense," he said. "I
appreciate the fact that he is getting a hearing today before the
United States Senate and hope for speedy confirmation."

Gates is expected to face little opposition in the Senate. And his
appearance before the Senate Armed Services Committee is likely to
focus more on the administration's Iraq policy than on his ability to
handle the job.

In Gates, the president chose a man well known to lawmakers. In the
early 1990s he served as head of the Central Intelligence Agency, and
has considerable Washington experience.

If confirmed, Gates will replace Donald Rumsfeld, one of the key
architects of the president's Iraq war strategy. Rumsfeld announced
his intention to leave the post immediately after November
congressional elections in which opposition to the war helped
Democrats win control of the House and Senate.


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