Lisa Franchetti leads the US Navy as the first female leader

 Lisa Franchetti leads the US Navy as the first female leader

Admiral Lisa Franchetti has been approved by the Senate to command the US Navy.

She becomes the first female member of the exclusive group of senior military commanders who make up the Joint Chiefs of Staff as Chief of Naval Operations.

The Senate pressed for her nomination in order to fill important positions in military leadership, and it was confirmed 95–1.

In opposition to the Pentagon's abortion policy, a senator from the Republican Party has been attempting to obstruct military appointments.

The 38-year-old former commander of US navy forces in South Korea and head of the US 6th Fleet previously held the position of aircraft carrier strike commander.

For the first time, a woman was nominated to lead a military service branch at the Pentagon by President Joe Biden.

Admiral Linda Fagan, a woman, is in charge of the US Coast Guard, although the Department of Homeland Security oversees the agency rather than the Department of Defense.

Two other high positions were occupied by senators.

The US media reported on Sunday that the Marine Corps Commandant seemed to have had a heart attack. This led to the approval of Lt Gen Chris Mahoney as Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps and the appointment of General David Allvin as Chief of Staff of the US Air Force.

Due to a Pentagon regulation that reimburses service members' out-of-state abortion costs, Republican senator from Alabama, Tommy Tuberville, has been preventing the Democratic-majority Senate from approving over 400 military promotions for the last nine months.

For the first time, his Republican colleagues defied him on Wednesday night, theatrically reading out the names of 61 candidates so that each might get a separate floor vote and therefore avoid his hold.

Republican Dan Sullivan of Alaska rebuked Mr. Tuberville, claiming that US soldiers' "careers are being punished over a policy controversy they had nothing to do with or had no power to resolve".

Legislators and military experts agree that he is endangering US national security by intervening in the Middle East and Ukraine crises.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer indicated in a statement on Thursday that "a combination of parties must work cooperatively to ensure that our military is fully staffed and appropriately equipped to defend the American people when any time, but particularly at this time of crisis."

The "unprecedented postponement of confirming our military's top leaders has impacted our military's readiness and disproportionately weighed down our military families," Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin stated, adding that he is "glad" that some appointments have been approved.

"They are exceptional leaders who have faithfully served their country for a long time, and I know they will continue to be outstanding representatives of our force as they continue to tackle the crucial national military issues of these challenging times," he stated in a press release.

"But we still possess additional than 370 superbly qualified leaders who were unfortunate to have their nominations unnecessarily stalled."