Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
Washingtonpost.com
June 10, 2008 By Robert Burns, Associated Press
PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. -- In his 1.5 years as Pentagon chief, Robert Gates has made a mark by sacking leaders of the military services at a pace not seen before in the modern era of the U.S. military.
His acts of accountability stand out in a Bush administration that has not enjoyed a reputation for holding senior officials -- military or otherwise -- to account when they fall short of meeting certain standards.
Soon after Gates replaced Donald H. Rumsfeld as defense secretary in December 2006 he forced Army Secretary Francis Harvey to resign, saying Harvey had not acted swiftly or boldly in response to revelations of shoddy care for wounded war veterans at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
In his six years leading the Pentagon, Rumsfeld fired only one top service official: Thomas White, the Army secretary, who had crossed Rumsfeld on issues relating to modernizing Army forces. In 2003 Rumsfeld weakened Gen. Eric Shinseki, then the Army chief of staff, but he did not remove him.
Gates is adamant in cautioning against equating his firing decisions with a lack of support for the overall performance of the military, including the Air Force, which he essentially decapitated by ousting its top civilian official, Michael Wynne, and its top uniformed officer, Gen. Michael Moseley, on the same day last week.
But he also leaves little room for doubt that when it comes to issues like those that brought down Moseley and Wynne -- mainly a failure to reverse a record of shortcomings in the Air Force's nuclear mission -- he will not hesitate.
"There is simply no room for error in this mission," he told airmen at Langley Air Force Base, Va., on Monday just hours after he announced in Washington his choices to succeed Wynne and Moseley.
"Nor is there, unfortunately, any room for second chances," he added.
Gates was addressing airmen at Peterson Air Force Base on Tuesday before flying to Scott Air Force Base, Ill., to meet with more service members and to talk to Gen. Norton Schwartz, Gates' choice to replace Moseley as Air Force chief of staff. Schwartz is commander of U.S. Transportation Command, which is responsible for all of the Pentagon military transportation. It is headquartered at Scott.
Gates hastily arranged his tour of Air Force bases after announcing the leadership shake-up on Thursday. Besides wanting to personally explain his firing decisions, Gates felt a need to reassure members of the Air Force that despite recent tensions he applauds their war efforts and supports their overall direction.
"The strike capabilities fielded by this command form the backbone of our strategic deterrence -- a role that is even more important with our ground forces so decisively committed to Iraq and Afghanistan," he said.
"Put simply, without your contributions in the skies, and in many cases on the ground, America's war effort would simply grind to a halt."
He told them he assumed some of them disagreed with his decision to sack Wynne and Moseley, and he acknowledged that his moves had created anxiety and turmoil in the ranks. After a private question-and-answer session at Langley, Gates told reporters -- who were not allowed to observe the session -- that he felt he'd overcome whatever misunderstanding or foreboding might have arisen.
"I think they're ready to move on," Gates said.
Gates won early praise from members of Congress for shaking up the Air Force leadership, and at least some retired Air Force generals applauded him for choosing Schwartz as the next chief of staff.
"It's the best possible choice," said Charles Link, a retired two-star general who was a fighter pilot.
"It's a good thing for the Air Force to have someone other than a fighter pilot there at this time," Link said in a telephone interview Monday.
Schwartz has a varied background that includes numerous assignments -- and a sterling reputation -- in Air Force special operations, a highly demanding and often secretive part of the service. He commanded the 16th Special Operations Wings at Hurlburt Field, Fla., in 1995-97, then commanded the Pacific region's special operations forces for a year and a half, and spent nine months in 2000 as deputy commander of U.S. Special Operations Command at Tampa, Fla.
Before being promoted to four-star general and assigned to Transportation Command, Schwartz served as chief of operations for the Joint Chiefs of Staff and later as its staff director. He was expecting to retire this fall.
June 10, 2008 By Robert Burns, Associated Press
PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. -- In his 1.5 years as Pentagon chief, Robert Gates has made a mark by sacking leaders of the military services at a pace not seen before in the modern era of the U.S. military.
His acts of accountability stand out in a Bush administration that has not enjoyed a reputation for holding senior officials -- military or otherwise -- to account when they fall short of meeting certain standards.
Soon after Gates replaced Donald H. Rumsfeld as defense secretary in December 2006 he forced Army Secretary Francis Harvey to resign, saying Harvey had not acted swiftly or boldly in response to revelations of shoddy care for wounded war veterans at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
In his six years leading the Pentagon, Rumsfeld fired only one top service official: Thomas White, the Army secretary, who had crossed Rumsfeld on issues relating to modernizing Army forces. In 2003 Rumsfeld weakened Gen. Eric Shinseki, then the Army chief of staff, but he did not remove him.
Gates is adamant in cautioning against equating his firing decisions with a lack of support for the overall performance of the military, including the Air Force, which he essentially decapitated by ousting its top civilian official, Michael Wynne, and its top uniformed officer, Gen. Michael Moseley, on the same day last week.
But he also leaves little room for doubt that when it comes to issues like those that brought down Moseley and Wynne -- mainly a failure to reverse a record of shortcomings in the Air Force's nuclear mission -- he will not hesitate.
"There is simply no room for error in this mission," he told airmen at Langley Air Force Base, Va., on Monday just hours after he announced in Washington his choices to succeed Wynne and Moseley.
"Nor is there, unfortunately, any room for second chances," he added.
Gates was addressing airmen at Peterson Air Force Base on Tuesday before flying to Scott Air Force Base, Ill., to meet with more service members and to talk to Gen. Norton Schwartz, Gates' choice to replace Moseley as Air Force chief of staff. Schwartz is commander of U.S. Transportation Command, which is responsible for all of the Pentagon military transportation. It is headquartered at Scott.
Gates hastily arranged his tour of Air Force bases after announcing the leadership shake-up on Thursday. Besides wanting to personally explain his firing decisions, Gates felt a need to reassure members of the Air Force that despite recent tensions he applauds their war efforts and supports their overall direction.
"The strike capabilities fielded by this command form the backbone of our strategic deterrence -- a role that is even more important with our ground forces so decisively committed to Iraq and Afghanistan," he said.
"Put simply, without your contributions in the skies, and in many cases on the ground, America's war effort would simply grind to a halt."
He told them he assumed some of them disagreed with his decision to sack Wynne and Moseley, and he acknowledged that his moves had created anxiety and turmoil in the ranks. After a private question-and-answer session at Langley, Gates told reporters -- who were not allowed to observe the session -- that he felt he'd overcome whatever misunderstanding or foreboding might have arisen.
"I think they're ready to move on," Gates said.
Gates won early praise from members of Congress for shaking up the Air Force leadership, and at least some retired Air Force generals applauded him for choosing Schwartz as the next chief of staff.
"It's the best possible choice," said Charles Link, a retired two-star general who was a fighter pilot.
"It's a good thing for the Air Force to have someone other than a fighter pilot there at this time," Link said in a telephone interview Monday.
Schwartz has a varied background that includes numerous assignments -- and a sterling reputation -- in Air Force special operations, a highly demanding and often secretive part of the service. He commanded the 16th Special Operations Wings at Hurlburt Field, Fla., in 1995-97, then commanded the Pacific region's special operations forces for a year and a half, and spent nine months in 2000 as deputy commander of U.S. Special Operations Command at Tampa, Fla.
Before being promoted to four-star general and assigned to Transportation Command, Schwartz served as chief of operations for the Joint Chiefs of Staff and later as its staff director. He was expecting to retire this fall.