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Esper takes over as acting defense secretary on Monday following
the resignation of Patrick Shanahan, who is stepping down after
media reports emerged this week of domestic violence in his
family.
Trump, who said on Friday he aborted a planned military strike
on Iran to retaliate for Tehran's downing of an unmanned U.S.
drone, has not had a permanent defense secretary for six months.
James Mattis abruptly quit as defense secretary in December
after falling out with Trump over his foreign policies,
including surprise decisions to pull troops from Syria and to
start planning a drawdown in Afghanistan.
Esper served in the first Gulf War, worked as an aide on Capitol
Hill, and spent seven years as vice president for government
relations at defense contractor Raytheon.
Trump said he also plans to nominate David Norquist, who
currently serves as the Pentagon's comptroller, to be deputy
defense secretary, and Ryan McCarthy, who is undersecretary of
the Army, to be secretary of the Army.
All the nominations need confirmation by the U.S. Senate.
(Reporting by Eric Beech; Editing by Mohammad Zargham and Sandra
Maler)
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