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Obama picks Shinseki to lead veterans affairs

(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-12-07 11:36

CHICAGO -- Barack Obama has selected retired Gen. Eric Shinseki, who clashed with the Bush administration over the number of troops needed in Iraq, to be the next secretary of veterans affairs.

Obama's announcement was made in a television interview taped on Saturday that is to be aired in full on Sunday.

This Feb. 25, 2003 file photo shows Gen. Eric K. Shinseki, then Chief of Staff of the United States Army, attends the Senate Armed Services committee hearing regarding the Defense Authorization Request for 2004 on Capitol Hill in Washington. US President-elect Barack Obama has selected retired Gen. Eric K. Shinseki to be VA secretary according to Democratic officials, Saturday Dec. 6, 2008. [Agencies]

Shinseki famously clashed with the administration of President George W. Bush over how many troops would be needed in Iraq after the US-led invasion.

Obama was to name Shinseki for the veterans' post at a news conference on Sunday that coincides with the anniversary of the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor.

"I think that General Shinseki is exactly the right person who is going to be able to make sure that we honor our troops when they come home," Obama told NBC's "Meet the Press" in a clip aired by NBC News on Saturday.

"Meet the Press" moderator Tom Brokaw noted Shinseki had lost his job in the Bush administration because he said more troops were needed in Iraq than then-Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld wanted.

"He was right," Obama said of Shinseki.

Obama's news conference is scheduled for 2 p.m. EST (1900 GMT) on Sunday.

Obama pledged during his presidential campaign to improve services for retired US military men and women if he won the White House.

The news conference is his latest in a string of announcements of appointments to his Cabinet and other top administration posts.

Shinseki would need Senate confirmation to the position.