Lt. Gen. Laura J. Richardson, 20 June 2019, US Army photo

Defense News reports that President has nominated three officers to assume the duties of Commander Combatant Command at TRANSCOM, PACOM, and SOUTHCOM.

The SOUTHCOM Commander is particularly important to the Coast Guard because  the Coast Guard’s drug interdiction efforts in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific fall under SOUTHCOM’s jurisdiction. Frequently SOUTHCOM has been a vocal advocate for the Coast Guard.

The SOUTHCOM nominee is Lt General Laura J. Richardson, currently the head of U.S. Army North. She is an aviator and has an interesting bio. More photos here.