Eric Fanning is Air Force’s Under Secretary and Civilian Head
On April 18, 2013, Eric Fanning was confirmed as the 24th Under Secretary of the Air Force . On June 21, 2013, he began to serve in the additional role of Acting Secretary of the Air Force owing to the retirement of his boss, Michael Donley. Because President Obama has not nominated a replacement for Donley, Fanning will hold both jobs until a replacement is found.
What Job Entails
Fanning is responsible for the organizing, training, equipping, and providing for the welfare of its more than 333,000 men and women on active duty:178,000 members of the Air National Guard and the Air Force Reserve, 182,000 civilians, and their families. He also oversees the Air Force’s more than $100 billion annual budget.
Former Jobs
Before becoming Under Secretary of the Air Force, Fanning served as Deputy Under Secretary of the Navy since 2009 and Deputy Director of the Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism . He worked for broadcast media, communication firms and think tanks also.
Fanning graduated from Dartmouth College in 1990. He worked for the House Armed Services Committee, then for the Defense Department and the Clinton White House. He is a former Victory Fund Board member (2004-2007) and a donor to various LGBT causes.
Fanning, an Ohio native, found working in the 1990’s as a civilian employee difficult. “I left the Pentagon before the reelection of President Clinton and then didn’t come back until Obama was in office. I didn’t know what I was going to do if we didn’t get the repeal through because some people couldn’t work because they were openly gay or lesbian.”
Fanning’s LGBT Platform
Fanning wants to include sexual orientation in the military’s formal nondiscrimination policy, a step further than the Pentagon’s policy. He supports allowing out transgender people to serve in the military. Currently, military regulations prohibit transgender service.
Says Fanning: “Speaking personally, I always think it’s important to have non-discrimination policies codified to include everyone. The military, because it has a chain of command, has a different attitude about t his and a different way to try to go about protecting airmen, soldiers, Marines – but Eric Fanning? Yes, I personally like to see these things in writing and codified.”
Eric Fanning also wants to see the Defense of Marriage Act struck down as it prevents same-sex military couples who serve in uniform from receiving full access to legal benefits.
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