Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will bid farewell in a speech Friday morning, just days before President-elect Trump is set to return to the White House. During his four years helming the Pentagon,

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is bidding farewell to the forces and personnel he's led through a tumultuous term.

It's unclear who'll take over at the Pentagon and the military services when the top leaders all step down Monday as President-elect Donald Trump is sworn into office.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin bid farewell Friday to the forces and personnel he has led through a tumultuous term that had three major military crises, a global pandemic and a personal brush with cancer that became a flashpoint for the way it was mishandled.

Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III and Chairman of the Joint Staff Air Force Gen. CQ Brown Jr. host an Armed Forces Farewell Tribute in honor of POTUS Joe

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin speaks during a Department of Defense Commander in Chief farewell ceremony at Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo ...

Austin, 71, spent 41 years of his life in a military uniform. He retired as a highly decorated four-star general who earned a Silver Star — an award given for gallantry in action — for leading ...

WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin bid farewell Friday ... on Earth” and told the packed crowd at Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall that, “for the past four years, we’ve stood ...

Austin, the First Black Defense Secretary, Ends His Term Marred by Afghanistan but Buoyed by Ukraine WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Lloyd ... at Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall that ...

Finally, there’s some accountability in the swamp. The Washington, D.C., blob loves to protect its own. It’s a slimy hierarchy based not on merit but fealty to the system and promotes its loyal servants to higher and higher ranks,

It is unclear who will take over at the Pentagon and the military services when the top leaders all step down Monday as President-elect Donald Trump is sworn into office. As of Friday, officials said they had not yet heard who will become the acting defense secretary.

The Philippine Embassy in the United States, headed by Philippine Ambassador to Washington Jose Manuel “Babe” Romualdez, hosted a reception for the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump.