WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama on Tuesday picked a Republican congressman known for his even temperament, willingness to work with Democrats and a steadfast support for the troops to become the top civilian leader of the Army.

Rep. John McHugh, who grew up in a middle-class family in his district of Watertown, could be a smart pick for the new president. It makes good on Obama's promise to reach across the aisle and minimizes, if not eliminates, congressional opposition. At the same time, taking McHugh out of the House gives Democrats a better chance at grabbing his seat in the next election.

Obama said McHugh is “committed to keeping America's Army the best trained the best equipped, the best land force the world has ever seen.”

It is the second time Obama has chosen a Republican for a high-ranking position at the Pentagon, itself a conservative institution. If confirmed, McHugh will join Defense Secretary Robert Gates, chosen by Obama to hold over from George W. Bush's Republican administration.

McHugh has represented upstate New York in Congress since 1993, and is the top Republican member of the House Armed Services Committee.

“The Army's always had a special place in my heart,” said McHugh, who has also served as co-chair of the House of Representatives Army Caucus and member of the Board of Visitors of the United States Military Academy at West Point.

McHugh's replacement will likely be decided by a special election that New York Gov. David Paterson would schedule in the Republican-leaning district. The governor said he won't announce an election until McHugh is confirmed.

McHugh is not a fire-and-brimstone Republican like his predecessor on the committee, former Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif. When Hunter proposed legislation banning women in certain combat support roles, McHugh was reluctant to sign on and the proposal fizzled.

McHugh also has agreed that the question of whether gays should be allowed to serve openly in the military - the “Don't Ask, Don't Tell” policy - should be reviewed.

“While some will argue that much has changed since 1993, and the current law is no longer relevant or needed, one thing has not changed in those 15 years,” McHugh said at an Armed Services Committee hearing last year. “As it was in 1993, the question of whether the law is to be changed should ultimately rest on the matters of military readiness, morale, good order, and discipline.”

As a former longtime chair of the committee's personnel subcommittee, McHugh is more than familiar with some of the main issues facing the Army today - pay, medical care, a soaring suicide rate and the need to keep young officers from leaving the service. In recent years, McHugh also has focused on easing the strain on soldiers and Marines stretched and stressed by back-to-back combat tours - a problem the Army would like to solve partly by lengthening time between tours.

Fellow lawmakers lauded Obama's choice for Army secretary and McHugh's experience.

“His work on the Armed Services Committee has made him one of our nation's foremost military experts and advocates, and his experience will be invaluable as Secretary of the Army, particularly as our nation continues to fight terrorism and other global threats to our security,” House GOP Leader John Boehner said in a statement.

“I think President Obama made an excellent pick,” said Democratic Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island.