The Senate has confirmed President Joe Biden’s pick for defense secretary, retired general Lloyd Austin, giving Biden his second Cabinet member two days after his inauguration. Austin was confirmed in a 93-2 vote on Friday, with Sens. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Mike Lee (R-Utah) voting nay. His ascent to the post of Pentagon head makes him the first black secretary of defense in U.S. history. “It’s an honor and a privilege to serve as our country’s 28th Secretary of Defense, and I’m especially proud to be the first African American to hold the position,” Austin wrote in a tweet following his confirmation. “Let’s get to work.” Ahead of the Senate confirmation vote, Austin had to clear the hurdle of getting a Congressional waiver that would let him bypass a law barring retired active-duty officers from serving in the top Pentagon job within seven years, a rule meant to safeguard civilian control of …