Senator seeks route for England to take Pentagon post

Senate Armed Services Chairman John Warner met Wednesday with the Pentagon's general counsel and a "team of people" from the Office of Government Ethics to attempt to resolve lingering financial conflict-of-interest issues surrounding the nomination of Gordon England to the Pentagon's No. 2 post.

Warner said Thursday no decision was reached during the two-hour meeting, though he said he is hopeful the matter will be resolved in time for a floor vote next week.

England's nomination as deputy Defense secretary has wide bipartisan support, but it has been put on hold for more than two months over a 25-year-old committee rule requiring the Pentagon's top officials with pensions from private companies to buy an insurance policy that locks the value of their benefits while in office.

MetLife, the only company that has insured pensions for Defense Department officials, recently decided to no longer do so.

England, a former defense industry executive, holds two pensions from defense giants Lockheed Martin and General Dynamics with a combined value of $280,000 a year. The goal is to find a "fair and reasonable" alternative to the MetLife plan, said Warner, who also met last week with Defense Secretary Rumsfeld on the matter. With several officials waiting in the confirmation queue, "it is important Rumsfeld get this individual in place," Warner said earlier this week. "I plan to do everything I can to help."

Warner, however, has said he prefers finding another insurance company to replace MetLife over two other options -- changing the committee's rule or using government funds to insure the pension.

Considered one of Rumsfeld's closest advisers, England currently serves as both Navy secretary and deputy Defense secretary, a position he took over from Paul Wolfowitz in May. England faced tough questions on shipbuilding and acquisition policy at his April confirmation hearing, but committee members generally support his nomination.