Public Intelligence Blog

From all I've heard and read, Gen Mattis is one of finest GO's to come along in a very long time.)

The ouster of Mattis: Some follow-up details and a White House response

Posted By Thomas E. Ricks Saturday, January 19, 2013 – 5:17 PM Share

Here are a few things I have heard since I posted my comments on Friday about the Obama administration pushing General Mattis out at Central Command. Thanks to all who wrote in to make this follow-up possible:

• A particular point of disagreement was what to do about mischief Iran is exporting to other countries. Mattis is indeed more hawkish on this than the White House was.

• National Security Advisor Tom Donilon in particular was irked by Mattis's insistence on being heard. I cringe when I hear about civilians shutting down strategic discussions. That is exactly what the Bush administration did in late 2002 when generals persisted in questioning whether it was wise to invade Iraq. That led to what some might call a fiasco.

• I wonder if Donilon understands that the key to making effective, sustainable national security policy is having robust, candid discussions between civilian and military leaders that bring to the surface differences and also explore assumptions. I am told that that is what Mattis was trying to do. He knows, as do all smart generals, that in our system, at the end of the discussion the civilians get to decide what to do. In a talk at Johns Hopkins SAIS in late November, Mattis said that, “We military leaders have a right and duty to be heard, to give our best military advice, but we were not elected to and we have no right to dictate.” (In the same talk, Mattis also likened Cairo today to Paris in 1789 — a very interesting thought, and one that made me wonder if 15 years from now, one Arab leader will dominate the entire region as Napoloen dominated Europe early in the 19^th century.)

• Insisting on being heard should be part of the duty of a senior general. That's the lesson of two great books: H.R. McMaster's Dereliction of Duty and Eliot Cohen's Supreme Command. Indeed, General Mattis cited the latter in his talk at Johns Hopkins SAIS. I suspect Donilon needs to brush up on both.
• Continue reading “Marcus Aurelius: White House Flushing US Hawks on Iran — Meanwhile, Intelligence with Integrity About Iran is Completely Lacking”

The letter appears only on the Association of the US Navy website, it does not appear at the Joint Chiefs website.

Letter from Joint Chiefs

Following Armed Forces Press Service item ((DOES)) appear as of 2042 EST, 19Jan13:

Sequestration Will Hollow Out Force Fast, Dempsey Says

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

ABOARD A MILITARY AIRCRAFT, Jan. 17, 2013 – The across-the-board spending cuts that would result if a “sequestration” mechanism in budget law kicks in March 1 will hollow out U.S. military forces faster than most Americans imagine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said today.

Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey said during a recent news briefing that if sequestration happens, the American military “will be less prepared in months and unprepared in a year.”

During an interview today on his return trip from NATO meetings in Brussels, the general said the cuts would quickly bring about a new type of hollow force.

Read full story.

ROBERT STEELE:  Below is an extracted paragraph from the alleged letter, the one paragraph that makes sense:

To avert this crisis, we urge you to take immediate action to provide adequate and stable funding for readiness.  We need a legislative solution that provides the time and flexibility to properly shape the best military force in the world.  This means prioritizing warfighting readiness, appropriately sizing our military and civilian workforce and force structure, and reducing overhead costs.  We must also be given the latitude to enact cost-saving reforms we need while eliminating the weapons and facilities we do not need.

My initial reaction is “wow!”  HOWEVER, the Joint Chiefs of Staff have not met Senator Sam Nunn (D-GA) basic guidance as issued when he was Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC):

I am constantly being asked for a bottom-line defense number.  I don’t know of any logical way to arrive at such a figure without analyzing the threat,; without determining  what changes in our strategy should be made in light of the changes in the threat; and then determining what force structure and weapons programs we need to carry out this revised strategy.  Senator Sam Nunn, then Chairman, SASC  Source (p. 3)

The Joint Chiefs of Staff have been dishonest and unprofessional up to this point, as have been their predecessors going all the way back to the end of World War II.  They have administered to budget share driven by the Military Industrial Congressional Complex (MICC) while accepting extremely dishonest appraisals of the global threat, producing an incoherent strategy, and perpetuating an acquisition system that is so dysfunctional it could reasonably be found to be treasonous,the United States being at war at this time (whether legitimately declared or not).

Continue reading “Marcus Aurelius: Letter from Joint Chiefs to Senate Armed Service Committee — Comment by Robert Steele + DoD Transformation RECAP”