Keeping Secretary of Defense Gates in the next administration
Every time I'm ready to write off Ralph Peters, he brilliantly captures and articulates something that keeps me reading.
In today's New York Post, he argues that the next administration should keep SecDef Gates on, because he's just that damn good. He positively gushes over him.
Couldn't agree more with him this time.
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MIRACLES do happen: A Bush Cabinet officer has proven not only competent, but wise, honest, independent and courageous.
That man is Defense Secretary Robert Gates - who just may be the best SecDef this country has ever had.
If only he could stay on into the next administration, he might rival our greatest Secretary of War, Elihu Root, the crucial military reformer of the early 20th century.
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That said, Gates respects his generals just as he values the privates. He just won't tolerate substandard performers. His motto could well be "Never imperious, always curious."
In other words, he's the anti-Rumsfeld. As SecDef, Donald Rumsfeld surrounded himself with yes-men. Gates seeks out the best men.
Rumsfeld assumed he knew everything. Gates understands that learning never stops.
The Rumsfeld Pentagon ran a propaganda organization that amounted to a self-licking ice-cream cone. Gates disdains self-promotion.
When the going got tough, Rummy sent his underlings out to take the hits. When Gates makes tough decisions, he stands in the line of fire himself - as he did last week in front of those Air Force audiences.
While the Rumsfeld Pentagon was subservient to the defense industry, from Boeing to Blackwater (to say nothing of Halliburton and the like), Gates insists on giving our troops - and taxpayers - the best value for our defense dollars. (The contractors hope to wait him out.)
Rumsfeld was a bully. Gates is a warrior.
Few Americans will miss the Bush administration. But the men and women in uniform will miss Bob Gates. He's the model of what a public servant should be.
The Hon. Robert Gates - Speech At The Shangri-La Conference
From The International Institute for Strategic Studies Website:
"The 7th IISS Shangri-La Dialogue was successfully concluded on 1 June 2008.
The Shangri-La Dialogue is recognised as a key event for defence and security diplomacy for the region. Since its inaugural meeting in 2002, the Dialogue has become an integral part of the architecture of Asian defence diplomacy and is seen as the region's premier and most inclusive security institution. The Shangri-La Dialogue continues to serve as the best available vehicle in the Asia-Pacific region for developing and channelling astute and effective public policy on defence and security.
The 27 invited countries are represented by delegations comprising defence ministers, chiefs of staff and other senior security policy-makers."
A very articulate speech by Robert Gates in Singapore. Also speeches by the Defence Minister from Japan, the PLA Deputy Chief of Staff from China, and ministers from Korea, Australia, India, France, UK and other countries in the region. Some good Q & A as well. Gates comes across as an accomplished diplomat and appears to wear power well. Thought some might find it interesting, if not already familiar with the speech. Thanks.
Direct Link To Gates Speech: http://www.iiss.org/conferences/the-...-robert-gates/
Transition in Time of War
Transition in Time of War
by SWJ Editors
Gordon Lubold has an informative article in today’s Christian Science Monitor titled Pentagon Ponders Transition in Time of War.
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The Pentagon is making a pointed effort to ensure that the transition to a new administration in January 2009 – the first time in 40 years that a handover of power will take place during wartime – goes smoothly, minimizing the risk of disruptions or attacks on military operations during the changeover….
Well worth reading in its entirety - and we even get a plug.
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Meanwhile, Gates's reputation for demanding accountability without trumpeting his own personality is popular across the department and in Congress, too. "I think he may be the best secretary of defense we ever had," says one active-duty Army officer in high-level circles.
Now, some would like him to stay on. One respected website devoted to irregular warfare called the Small Wars Journal contains an open letter to the new administration asking that whoever wins to consider keeping Gates.
Shortest, but Most Important SWJ Post to Date - Small Wars Journal, 13 June 2008