John M . McHugh John Michael McHugh ( born September 29 , 1948 ) is the 21st United States Secretary of the Army and a former Republican politician from the state of New York , who represented the state ' s 23rd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives . On June 2 , 2009 , President Barack Obama nominated him to the position of United States Secretary of the Army . The United States Senate confirmed McHugh in a voice vote on September 16 , 2009 . He was sworn in as the 21st Secretary of the Army at a Pentagon ceremony on September 21 , 2009 , even though he has never served in the Army . Early life and career . McHugh was born in Watertown , New York . He graduated from Watertown High School in 1966 and went on to Utica College where he graduated with a B . A . in political science in 1970 . He later went on to receive a Master of Public Administration degree from the Nelson A . Rockefeller Graduate School of Public Affairs at the State University of New York at Albany in 1977 . McHugh served as an assistant to Watertown ' s city manager from 1971 to 1977 . He then served as an aide to State Senator H . Douglas Barclay from 1977 to 1984 , when he was elected as his successor . He served as a member of the State Senate until his election to Congress . Congressional career . He ran successfully for the U . S . House of Representatives in 1992 to replace Congressman David O ' Brien Martin in the 24th district , which was renumbered as the 23rd district after the 2000 census . This part of Upstate New York has historically been very Republican at the congressional level , though it has recently become more competitive in presidential elections . The district ( and its predecessors ) has been in Republican hands continuously since 1871 , and some parts of the district have not been represented by a Democrat since 1851 . McHugh has been reelected eight times with no substantive opposition , even running unopposed in 2002 . McHugh was the ranking Republican on the House Armed Services Committee , and is also a senior member of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee . He was chairman of the Oversight Committee ' s Post Service Subcommittee for six years , and worked to pass legislation to significantly reform the U . S . Postal Service for the first time since it was demoted from a Cabinet - rank department with passage of the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act ( ) in 2006 . He was a member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence from 2005 to 2007 . McHugh defeated his Democratic opponent , Dr . Robert J . Johnson , in 2004 and again in 2006 . During the campaign , Dr . Johnson found himself unable to fly due to his name appearing on the No Fly List . At the time , Johnson speculated that he was added to the list because of his anti - war views and opposition to McHugh . McHugh ' s office denied any wrongdoing . A later CBS News investigation discovered that the name " Robert Johnson " appeared on the list due to its use as an alias by a man convicted of plotting bombings in Toronto . Several other men named Robert Johnson were affected by its inclusion . McHugh was the only one of New York ' s eight Republican incumbents to win by more than 60 % of the vote in 2006 . The other seven were either defeated or were held below 60 % by their Democratic challengers . McHugh defeated Democrat Mike Oot in 2008 , garnering 65 . 3 % of the vote . Political views . McHugh is a moderate Republican , which is typical for Republicans from New York . He has a lifetime rating of 71 from the American Conservative Union . McHugh voted " yes " along with only 7 other Republicans on the American Clean Energy Act ( also known as Cap and Trade ) on June 26 , 2009 . The measure passed by only eight votes . Secretary of the Army . On June 2 , 2009 , McHugh was nominated to the position of Secretary of the Army , by President Barack Obama . He was sworn in as the 21st Secretary of the Army at a Pentagon ceremony on September 21 , 2009 . Interestingly , McHugh , a Republican appointed by a Democratic president , succeeded Pete Geren , a Democrat appointed by a Republican president . McHugh never served in any branch of the military . In March 2010 McHugh said that he would not pursue discharges against soldiers who tell him privately that they are gay . McHugh said he has talked to openly gay soldiers as part of assessing the force ' s opinion on the repeal of a controversial law that bans openly gay people from serving in the military . Under then current law , known as “ Don ' t ask , don ’ t tell , ” service members who declare that they are gay would have to be discharged , but McHugh indicated he would not pursue any discharges against soldiers who make those statements in private conversations with him . In May 2010 , McHugh was granted an honorary degree from the State University of New York Board of Trustees , to be presented during the commencement ceremonies at SUNY Oswego . When the decision to award McHugh the honorary degree was made public , the SUNY Oswego Pride Alliance , an LGBT student group , organized a protest to be held on campus during the ceremony . Following weeks of debate on campus , which included a Student Association Senate resolution condemning the " Don ' t Ask , Don ' t Tell " policy , McHugh withdrew from the ceremony , stating , " it is obvious that my presence at the ceremony might well have a disruptive effect . " Personal . McHugh is divorced from his wife , Katherine Sullivan . He has a home in the hamlet of Pierrepont Manor . McHugh was voted one of the 50 most beautiful people on Capitol Hill by " The Hill " magazine .