CRAWFORD, Texas -- Preparing to nominate Air Force Gen. Richard Myers to be chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, President Bush said Thursday he had found in his selection "someone who's willing to think differently about the missions of our military."
Bush refused to confirm reports from White House officials that his final choice was Myers. Bush said he would make an announcement Friday.
"We've been looking for someone who will bring the highest standards of excellence to the office, someone who's willing to think differently about the missions of our military ... how we conform our defenses to the true threats that face America not only now but in the out-years," Bush told reporters near his ranch, where he is vacationing.
"I'm looking for somebody, obviously, with experience; somebody who understands what the job entails and we found that person."
Myers is scheduled to fly to the president's ranch in Crawford, Texas, on Friday with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld.
White House aides, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Myers' presence was a strong indication he is Bush's pick. One senior adviser said late Wednesday that Bush planned to tap Myers.
The selection of Myers, former commander in chief of the U.S. Space Command, would reflect Bush's desire to emphasize newer technologies in the military, the importance of space and computers in warfare and emerging threats around the globe.
If Myers were elevated to the chairman's post from his current position as vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Bush would have to nominate his replacement.
White House press secretary Ari Fleischer confirmed on Wednesday that Myers will be among those briefing Bush on Friday about Defense Department plans to revamp the military. "He's one of the key people involved in the military transformation," Fleischer said.
One senior official who talked to Bush about the selection said the president had shared his choice with a small circle of aides and ordered them not to disclose it. That official refused to say whom Bush had chosen.
Bush's pick, if confirmed by the Senate, would replace Army Gen. Henry H. Shelton, who steps down Sept. 30.
The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is the top military adviser to both the president and the defense secretary.
Last week Rumsfeld said Bush had settled on a nominee. Rumsfeld would not say who was chosen, but other defense officials said Myers was a finalist, along with Adm. Vern Clark, the chief of naval operations.
Myers, a native of Kansas City, Missouri, is a fighter pilot by training. He entered the Air Force in 1965 through the Reserve Officer Training Corps program at Kansas State University, where he earned a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering. He also holds a master's degree in business administration from Auburn University.
He has been vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs since February 2000. Before that, he spent two years simultaneously heading the Space Command and the North American Aerospace Defense Command, at Colorado Springs, Colorado.
He also has served as commander of Pacific Air Forces, based at Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii, and as commander of U.S. forces in Japan.
Myers has had extensive experience on the Joint Chiefs of Staff. During Army Gen. John Shalikashvili's tenure as Joint Chiefs chairman, Myers was his principal assistant.
If confirmed by the Senate, Myers would be the first Air Force officer to serve as Joint Chiefs chairman since Gen. David Jones, who held the post from 1978 to 1982.
By law, the only candidates for the chairman's job are the top generals and admirals who lead each of the services, as well as the commanders of the military's war-fighting and supporting commands -- 13 four-star officers in all.
