Quote Originally Posted by UCrawford View Post
True, Gates has apparently been out of circulation for awhile, but I think that this may be a situation in which a weaker Secretary of Defense isn't going to be so problematic. It seemed the major issue with Rumsfeld that continually came up was he was very dismissive of the military's advice or needs, heeding only his own opinion. Assuming Gates doesn't pursue a similar management style ("My way or the highway") it may be more productive to have a SECDEF who is more deferential to the generals in a time of war. To be honest, the military commanders have a better education in warfighting than pretty much any SECDEF appointee ever would and if Gates realizes that maybe the military advice that gets to the President won't be as watered down as it reportedly has been.

Good leadership isn't always about having all the answers yourself...it's about realizing what the best choices are when they're presented to you.
A very good observation UCrawford. I guess even I have been so conditioned that I didn't think of those possibilities.