McCrystal's Glass Command

I must admit, I was not a fan of General Stanley McChrystal when president Obama promoted him to four star general, and then appointed him the new commander of American forces in Afghanistan. (Replacing the then commanding General David McKiernan and banishing him to a less than honorable forced retirement.)

And since his promotion and appointment to command in Afghanistan, General McChrystal has done absolutely nothing in my opinion, to either distinguish himself in his new command, or to provide any indication that he was/is the supposed necessary answer, to turn the war around in Afghanistan.

Americans should not be confused as it concerns what is going on in Afghanistan, or with what is going on with president Obama's goals in Afghanistan or the region. And Americans should not be confused as it concerns defense secretary Robert Gates and president Obama's decision to keep him in this administration.

Robert Gates (as Secretary of Defense) didn't make the decision to replace General McKiernan in Afghanistan, he was only the president's message boy delivering the president's message of firing. The fact that Gates remained secretary of defense after Obama assumed the presidency, speaks to only one reality and that reality is that Gates is a yes man and a rubber stamp for this president and he knows it. One misstep? One crossing of the official policy line? One attempt to speak out on his own or take any position contrary to the president's? And Robert Gates will be gone every bit as fast or faster than General McKiernan was.

I don't have anything personal against General Stanley McChrystal. I am sure that he is or was a competent commander, but he made a mistake by taking his present command and by accepting this promotion IMO. I have to question in my own mind, what he could have possibly been thinking when he accepted the position. Did he not realize that he would be nothing more than a caretaker while Obama purposely imploded the war and reduced manpower and funding until defeat was obvious? Did he not realize that he would be absolutely powerless to exert any command prerogative or initiative to affect the direction of the war? Did this graduate of West Point and former Special Forces commander not realize that he was being set up as a "patsy" by this president?

Or was he simply dazzled and beguiled by the thought of that fourth star on his shoulders. Either way, it is more than obvious to this casual observer (and many others for that matter), that since assuming command in Afghanistan, General McChrystal's only accomplishments have been to let it be known that America is losing the war and that if something isn't done soon, we will lose the war completely.

His first warning that we are losing the war (a month or so into his command and assessment) was quickly denied by the White House and the general's statements were disavowed by the Obama administration as having been taken out of context. But the general persisted a couple of weeks later and once again expressed his serious concerns over our capability to fight and win this war under current constraints of manpower and funding.

Then last week the real bomb shell exploded. The media learned (leaked) that General McChrystal had submitted his review of Afghanistan to the president, before Obama had left for Labor Day on Martha's Vineyard. And Obama had done absolutely nothing with the report or the general's recommendations since receiving them, three weeks earlier. we can only assume, that the report includes the general's request for additional troops and funding.

And as of last night's interview with the general on 60 Minutes, it was learned that General McChrystal has only spoken to his commander in chief once since he has been in Afghanistan and in charge of the war. Once in the last seventy days (according to the general's own admission) has he spoken to the president concerning what is going on in Afghanistan. As a betting man, I would be willing to wager that lone conversation occurred not long after after the General's first misstep by admitting that we are losing the war.

(The entire 60 Minutes piece can be viewed) HERE

Having watched the 60 Minutes interview with the General? I am not impressed. My take of his admissions and positions, is that he in attempting to manage the war from a political perspective, as opposed to a military one. Limiting air strikes and daily conference calls with the Pentagon won't win this war. Neither will his other command decisions like ordering flags to not be lowered for our honored dead just to name a few.

General McChrystal may have been sent to Afghanistan to make assessments and determinations, but he wasn't sent there to win a war IMO. The man is not a warrior. He is a military bureaucrat and a power point driven commander in my estimation. Someone that may have been trained and may know in theory what needs to be done? But one who doesn't know how to apply that knowledge and skill practically in a real time environment IMO.

Are we losing the war in Afghanistan? If you asked me, I would say yes, without a doubt. We began losing it just as soon as this president took the reins of office and that was further evidenced just as soon as he appointed General McChrystal to command the war in Afghanistan. Are we losing the war in Afghanistan? At the present time we have already lost it IMO.

Was General McChrystal so stupid as to not know that he was being used and set up for the fall? I don't believe so. The general knew exactly what he was doing by accepting this command. Therefore, his reasoning can only be based in one reality IMO. There was a fourth star in it for General McChrystal. He may have thought that he could make a difference, or that he would be allowed to actually command the war and make the appropriate determinations once he was there, but he has now learned that is not the case. And IMO, he was only lying to himself to ever believe otherwise with this president.

As I said earlier, General Stanley McChrystal was brought on board and promoted by president Obama for one reason and one reason only. He was to be the interim caretaker over the affair, while Barack Obama imploded the war and his leftist media convince America that the war was lost and not worth continuing. Which is a campaign the media in America began in earnest about two weeks ago with their push polls and drum beat of supposed discontent with the war by most Americans.

It's a sad epitaph as it concerns General McChrystal IMO, but he (as we use to say in the Corps) has booked a loser. And the only honorable thing that he can do as a general and as a career Army officer at this point, is to firmly pace the gauntlet on the table with his commander in chief. McChrystal needs to make his positions known to the president and stand by the integrity of his assessment. He needs to stand by that decision on behalf of our men and women in the field who each require no less than integrity from their commanding general.

And if the president refuses to accept the general's assessment on the war and what is needed and what will be required to win it? Then General McChrystal should resign his command and return to Washington. Whereby his last official act before leaving the army, should be to return that fourth star before its cost completely tarnishes his otherwise notable career.