The Marine Corps' acting chief issued a letter to the force this week pledging continuity as an unprecedented congressional blockade of his confirmation to commandant continues.
Gen. Eric Smith officially holds the title of assistant commandant; however, he assumed the additional role of acting commandant when Gen. David Berger stepped down nearly a month ago without a Senate-confirmed successor. For the first time in 164 years, the service does not have a confirmed chief.
Smith's appointment has been stopped by Tommy Tuberville, a Republican senator from Alabama who is holding up roughly 270 military nominations and promotions over his objections to the Pentagon's policy allowing troops and their dependents leave and travel reimbursement for reproductive care, including abortions.
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“Until the Senate confirms our 39th Commandant, this guidance will serve as our reference point,” Smith wrote to thousands of Marines via a letter dated Aug. 1. “I cannot predict how long this process may take, but waiting is not an option for Marines, so we will move out as a team — just as we would in combat.
“We are always strongest as a team,” he added.
In 2019, Berger issued a 26-page “Commandant's Planning Guidance” a week after he took command. Smith, whose hold has no clear end date, intentionally left his four-page letter “broad” to “leave…
