Senate to consider DOD CIO nomination

The Senate Armed Services Committee will hold a hearing Thursday to consider the nomination of John Grimes to lead the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Networks and Information Integration and Chief Information Officer.

President Bush nominated Grimes in June to succeed Linton Wells, who held the Pentagon’s top information technology position in an acting capacity since early 2004. Wells filled in for John Stenbit, who retired after serving four years in the post.

Grimes worked for the Defense Department from 1990 to 1994 as deputy assistant secretary for counterintelligence and security countermeasures and deputy assistant secretary for command, control, communications and intelligence.

He began his career with military information systems while on active duty in the Air Force in 1956, when he worked on one of DOD’s first major computer-driven projects -- the Air Force’s Semi-Automatic Ground Environment, an air defense surveillance system that used radar connected to early IBM mainframe computers.

The Senate committee will also consider five other nominations:

-- William Anderson for assistant secretary of the Air Force for installations, environment and logistics.

-- Philip Bell for deputy undersecretary of Defense for logistics and materiel readiness.

-- Keith Eastin for assistant secretary of the Army for installations and environment.

-- Air Force Lt. Gen. Norton Schwartz for commander of the U.S. Transportation Command.

-- Ronald Sega for undersecretary of the Air Force.