It is intolerable for officers to publicly criticize or mock senior political figures, including the vice president or the ambassador (who is, after all, the president's personal representative to a foreign government). It is intolerable for them to publicly ridicule allies. And quite apart from his own indiscretions, it is the job of a commanding general to set a tone that makes such behavior unacceptable on the part of his subordinates.RELATED: Some interesting links at Instapundit, here and here.
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Tuesday, June 22, 2010
McChrystal and Civil-Military Relations
Eliot Cohen, who is not kind to Obama (and his strategic blunders in Afghanistan), puts the burden on McChrystal's breach of civilian control, "Why McChrystal Has to Go":
He has to go. Sorry, while General McChrystal might be absolutely right in all of his criticisms, he still can't make them in public. That's a violation of Article 88 of the UCMJ, and is a court-martial offense.
ReplyDeleteIf I were POTUS I'd fire him.
ReplyDeleteBut I totally understand why McChrystal felt driven to this extreme. I feel that way daily myself. I call it the Obama Daily Outrage.
I would ask the question, "Is this any different than having a President and an administration, who are supposed to be working for the citizens of this country, bad mouthing its citizens and the country they are suppose to represent." One might wonder if Obama and his administration has not created an environment where this is just SOP because of their own actions. What is the real difference, disrespect of a country's citizens lead to a disrespect for its President, the administration, Congress and other institutions of governance. It would seem that those who cast the most aspersions do not like it when their actions engender the same actions from those who work for them.
ReplyDeleteHaving spent a number of years in the military and in a job where I represented its citizens, government, military and the members of the Armed Forces of this country I, and those who worked with and for me took great pride in representing this country in a very professional manner. Can one state that Obama and his administration is doing the same?
McChrystal is supposed to be a professional and should know better. It is just too bad that he now has to represent a President and government that is NOT. It would seem to me that McChrystal is carrying on the administrations on actions with as much fervor as the Obama administration is carrying on their job for the country. What's the beef here. You get what you sow as they say.
Dana and Opus, I agree with you (except for the partisan criticism of Obama, of course). Dennis however seems to be quite comfortable rationalizing a general's public disrespect for his Commander in Chief. Go USA, right guy?
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, this debacle is yet another sign that Obama and his administration are totally incompetent. Obama has never managed anything bigger than the Harvard Law Review -- and he is totally over his head.
ReplyDeleteWe are a country at war being run by a community organizer. What a tragedy -- especially for those kids in harm's way in Afghanistan.