Former Governor Tapped as Next SecNav

President Obama has nominated Ray Mabus, who served as Mississippi’s governor from 1988 to 1992, as next secretary of the Navy. Mabus, a former Navy officer, later became the U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia under President Bill Clinton. During his tenure, he worked to avert a crisis with Iraq and oversaw Saudi Arabia’s abandonment of a planned boycott of U.S. businesses that trade with Israel, said a biography provided by the White House. Mabus also was chief executive officer of Foamex, a Pennsylvania-based manufacturer. If confirmed by the Senate, he would succeed Donald C. Winter.