Biden Endorses Female Generals Whose Promotions Were Delayed Over Fears of Trump’s Reaction

Mr. Esper and General Milley feared that if they even broached the women’s names, Mr. Trump and some of his top aides would replace them with their own candidates before leaving office.

So the Pentagon officials delayed their recommendations until after the election in November, betting that if Joseph R. Biden Jr. won, then he and his aides would be more supportive of the picks than Mr. Trump, who had feuded with Mr. Esper and General Milley and had a history of disparaging women. They stuck to the plan even after Mr. Trump fired Mr. Esper six days after the election.

“They were chosen because they were the best officers for the jobs, and I didn’t want their promotions derailed because someone in the Trump White House saw that I recommended them or thought D.O.D. was playing politics,” Mr. Esper, referring to the Department of Defense, said in an interview with The New York Times, which first reported the strategy last month.

“This was not the case,” Mr. Esper added. “They were the best qualified. We were doing the right thing.”

The strategy paid off on Saturday, when the Pentagon announced in separate afternoon statements and in Twitter messages from its press secretary, John F. Kirby, that Mr. Biden had endorsed the generals’ promotions and that the White House was formally submitting them to the Senate for approval.