A quarter of Joint Chiefs of Staff positions are vacant as Army Chief retires without replacement

"For the first time in U.S. history, two of the eight seats on the Pentagon’s Joint Chiefs of Staff are filled by interim officers, thanks to Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s eight-month-long hold on military promotions.

On Friday, outgoing Army Chief of Staff Gen. James McConville retired, handing the job of running the service to his No. 2, Gen. Randy George."

https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/04/tuberville-hold-as-james-mcconville-retires-00109833

5/8ths of the positions are still filled, at least.

“By year’s end, The Pentagon estimates that about three-quarters of the generals and admirals in the Defense Department — 650 of 852 — will be affected by Tuberville’s hold.

“His hold is not absolute, but it gums up the usual process in which well-qualified, noncontroversial nominees are approved by the Senate in batches. It’s possible to vote on them individually, but doing so would take months, Democrats say.”

650 of 852!!

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/08/12/military-promotions-blocked-tuberville/