Senate Confirms New SMDC Commanding General
The U.S. Senate has confirmed Maj. Gen. John L. Rafferty, Jr., for promotion to lieutenant general and assignment as commanding general of the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command — a critical post at a time when America’s adversaries are rapidly advancing their missile and space capabilities.
Rafferty currently serves as chief of staff at U.S. European Command in Germany and brings more than 33 years of military leadership and technical expertise to the role. His career has centered heavily on field artillery operations and high-level command and staff assignments, positioning him well to oversee one of the Army’s most strategically significant commands.
Among his recent assignments: commanding general of the 56th Artillery Command, U.S. Army Europe-Africa; chief of Army Public Affairs in Washington, D.C.; director of the Long Range Precision Fires Cross Functional Team at Fort Sill, Oklahoma; executive officer to the director of the Army Staff; and commander of the 18th Field Artillery Brigade at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
Rafferty has also supported major combat and contingency operations, including Operations Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom, Spartan Shield, and Inherent Resolve. He will succeed Lt. Gen. Sean A. Gainey, who is retiring after more than 35 years of service to the nation.
His confirmation comes amid an aggressive push by Senate Republicans to accelerate President Donald J. Trump’s second-term appointments and restore full operational leadership across federal agencies and the armed forces.
In a 53–43 vote Thursday, the Senate approved 97 of the President’s nominees in one of the final bursts of floor action before lawmakers turn to appropriations and other pressing matters. Under the leadership of Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., Republicans have moved swiftly since regaining control of the chamber in January.
Along the way, the GOP navigated internal divisions to pass the president’s signature “one big, beautiful bill” and bring an end to the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, Fox News reported.
But the path has not been smooth. Democrats imposed blanket objections on numerous nominations — including routine and lower-level positions — significantly slowing the confirmation process.
Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., said Republicans began the year confirming Trump’s Cabinet at a historic pace before encountering what he described as “unprecedented obstruction from the Democratic minority.”
“We began the year by confirming President Trump’s Cabinet faster than any Senate in modern history,” Barrasso said per Fox. “And by week’s end, President Trump will have 417 nominees confirmed by the Senate this year. That’s far more than the 365 that Joe Biden had in his first year in office.”
In response to the continued resistance, Republicans invoked the so-called nuclear option in September, lowering the vote threshold for confirming sub-Cabinet nominees. Since that procedural shift, the Senate has approved 417 of President Trump’s picks — dramatically reducing a backlog that had swelled to nearly 150 nominees over the summer. Just 15 now remain.
Thune accused Senate Democrats, led by Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., of engaging in “nothing more than petty politics” by blocking standard fast-track mechanisms such as voice votes and unanimous consent agreements, which are typically used to advance less controversial nominations.
“Democrats cannot deal with the fact that the American people elected President Trump, and so they’ve engaged in this pointless political obstruction in revenge,” Thune said.
Among the recent confirmations are former Rep. Anthony D’Esposito, R-N.Y., tapped as inspector general at the Department of Labor, as well as James Murphy and Scott Mayer, nominees to the National Labor Relations Board. Lawmakers are also expected to consider Joshua Simmons, the President’s choice for CIA special counsel, before the week’s end.
At the same time, senators are attempting to advance a sprawling “minibus” spending package that combines five appropriations bills. Some Democrats are objecting to the measure, raising uncertainty about whether it will reach the floor before the end of the month.
Negotiations continue behind closed doors, but Thune made clear that clearing the nominee package was the immediate priority.
“We’ll see where it goes from there,” Thune said.
With Rafferty’s confirmation, the Army’s Space and Missile Defense Command gains an experienced artillery and strategic fires leader at a moment when missile defense, long-range precision fires, and space dominance are increasingly central to U.S. national security. And for President Trump’s administration, it marks yet another step in consolidating leadership across the federal government despite sustained political resistance.