Marine Choice To Lead Joint Chiefs

President Bush on Friday nominated Marine Gen. Peter Pace to be the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He was expected to win easy Senate confirmation to succeed Air Force Gen. Richard B. Myers.

Mr. Bush called Pace, who has quietly helped shape the Pentagon's role in the global war on terrorism, a "can-do" Marine who "knows the job well."

"I'm counting on Pete Pace to bring the Marine spirit to these new responsibilities," the president said.

Pace, 59, would be the first Marine to serve in the nation's top uniformed military post and only the second vice chairman to rise to chairman. Myers, due to retire Sept. 30 after four years on the job, was the first.

Mr. Bush announced the nomination in a Roosevelt Room ceremony at the White House.

Praising his "wisdom and determination," Mr. Bush said Pace would help with the mission of transforming the armed forces "so we can defeat today's enemies while preparing ourselves for military challenges we will face as this new century unfolds."

The president also praised Myers for being "able service over four decades, and his tireless dedication to duty and country."

In his remarks, Pace thanked Mr. Bush for his "trust and faith in me."

"This is an incredible moment for me," Pace said. He called the promotion "exhilarating," but added, "I know the challenges ahead are formidable."

Mr. Bush also announced he was nominating Navy Adm. Edmund Giambastiani Jr. as deputy Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Giambastiani, 56, was Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld's senior military assistant before being named commander of U.S. Joint Forces Command in 2002.

After stumbling over Giambastiani's name several times, Mr. Bush dubbed him "Admiral G" to laughter.

Later, Pace showed himself to be a quick study. :I am delighted that I'll have the opportunity to work side-by-side with Admiral Ed G.," he said, joking: "I am trainable, Mr. President."

After nearly four years in the No. 2 job a period in which the war on terror after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks has been the military's dominant focus Pace has remained a relatively unknown figure to the public.

Privately, he is said to get along well with Rumsfeld, who moved Pace into the vice chairman's spot on Oct. 1, 2001, after Pace had served only one year as commander of U.S. Southern Command.

The Joint Chiefs chairman, who normally serves two two-year terms, is the senior military adviser to the president as well as the secretary of defense. However, he commands no troops and is not in the chain of command that runs from the president to the secretary of defense to commanders in the field.

Born in New York City and raised in Teaneck, N.J., Pace graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy and earned a master's degree in business administration from George Washington University.

After basic training in 1968, he was sent to Vietnam as a rifle platoon leader. He later served in Korea and was a commander for two years during the Somalia intervention that ended in a U.S. withdrawal.

Earlier in his career Pace's assignments included an unusual combination of staff and command jobs. After his return from Vietnam in 1969 he served as head infantry writer at the Marine Corps Institute in Washington, D.C., then security detachment commander at the Camp David, Md., presidential retreat.

He also served as a presidential social aide at the White House and later was commanding officer of the Marine Corps recruiting station in Buffalo, N.Y. After he reached the rank of brigadier general in 1992 he became president of Marine Corps University. It was during that assignment that he was sent to Somalia as deputy commander of Marine forces. He reached four-star rank in 2000.

Pace and his wife, Lynne, have a daughter, Tiffany Marie, and a son, Peter.