Capping off a relatively smooth confirmation process, the Senate on Thursday voted 93-5 to approve Ashton Carter as the nation's next Secretary of Defense.
The 60-year-old Carter will replace Chuck Hagel, who last year announced his intent to step down as the Obama administration began to shift its national security strategy to better confront emerging global crises. Though Hagel said he made the decision to resign on his own, the Obama administration privately signaled he'd been forced out, with one official saying Hagel "wasn't up to the job."
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