Senator plans to expedite Petraeus' confirmation

Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin, D-Mich., plans to hold a confirmation hearing by Tuesday for Army Gen. David Petraeus to become the commander of U.S. and allied forces in Afghanistan.

Levin said at news conference Wednesday that he is confident the Senate will be able to confirm Petraeus, who now heads U.S. Central Command, before the July 4 recess.

President Obama selected Petraeus to replace Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal, who resigned as Afghanistan war commander Wednesday after he and several aides made incendiary comments about the president, Vice President Joe Biden and several members of the administration's national security team in a Rolling Stone magazine profile.

In his current assignment, Petraeus oversees the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan from his regional command post. He previously commanded forces in Iraq and devised the military's counterinsurgency strategy outlining a new approach to warfare.

"General Petraeus is a solid choice to take over in Afghanistan. He provides strength, and he provides continuity," Levin said. "Indeed, he was the architect of the counterinsurgency strategy. He literally wrote the book that set that strategy out."