Posted on 04/12/2006 4:18:07 PM PDT by ejdrapes
WASHINGTON - A recently retired two-star general who just a year ago commanded a U.S. Army division in Iraq on Wednesday joined a small but growing list of former senior officers to call on Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to resign. "I believe we need a fresh start in the Pentagon. We need a leader who understands teamwork, a leader who knows how to build teams, a leader that does it without intimidation," Maj. Gen. John Batiste, who commanded the Germany-based 1st Infantry Division in Iraq, said in an interview on CNN. In recent weeks, retired Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Gregory Newbold, Army Maj. Gen. Paul Eaton and Marine Corps Gen. Anthony Zinni all spoke out against Rumsfeld. This comes as opinion polls show eroding public support for the 3-year-old war in which about 2,360 U.S. troops have died. "You know, it speaks volumes that guys like me are speaking out from retirement about the leadership climate in the Department of Defense," Batiste said. "But when decisions are made without taking into account sound military recommendations, sound military decision making, sound planning, then we're bound to make mistakes." Batiste, a West Point graduate who also served during the previous Gulf War, retired from the Army on November 1, 2005. While in Iraq, his division, nicknamed the Big Red One, was based in Tikrit, and it wrapped up a yearlong deployment in May 2005. Critics have accused Rumsfeld of bullying senior military officers and disregarding their views. They often cite how Rumsfeld dismissed then-Army Chief of Staff Gen. Eric Shinseki's opinion a month before the 2003 invasion that occupying Iraq could require "several hundred thousand troops," not the smaller force Rumsfeld would send. Many experts believe that the chaos that ensued and the insurgency that emerged just months later vindicated Shinseki's view. Batiste told CNN "we've got the best military in the world, hands down, period." He did not say whether he felt the war was winnable. 'LACK OF SACRIFICE' "Whether we agree or not with the war in Iraq, we are where we are, and we must succeed in this endeavor. Failure is frankly not an option," Batiste said. Batiste said he was struck by the "lack of sacrifice and commitment on the part of the American people" to the war, with the exception of families with soldiers fighting in Iraq. "I think that our executive and legislative branches of government have a responsibility to mobilize this country for war. They frankly have not done so. We're mortgaging our future, our children, $8 to $9 billion a month," he said, referring to the cost of the war. He defined success in the war as "setting the Iraqi people up for self-reliance with their form of representative government that takes into account tribal, ethnic and religious differences that have always defined Iraqi society." "Iraqis, frankly, in my experience, do not understand democracy. Nor do they understand their responsibilities for a free society," Batiste said. Newbold, the military's top operations officer before the Iraq war, said in a Time magazine opinion piece on Sunday that he regretted having not more openly challenged U.S. leaders who took the United States into "an unnecessary war" in Iraq. Newbold encouraged officers still in the military to voice any doubts they have about the war. On Tuesday, Marine Corps Gen. Pete Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, defended Rumsfeld from the criticism. Rumsfeld said that "there's nothing wrong with people having opinions," and that criticism should be expected during a war as controversial as this one.Retired US Iraq general demands Rumsfeld resign
of course I thank him for his time in Iraq but I gotta wonder if he's a bit bent that he didn't get his 3rd star....
somewhere I read a quote by a retired general that the best service a retired general can render his country is to keep his opinions to himself.
But that's good advice, wisdom, perhaps, and whiners aren't the sort to use wisdom.
"I think that our executive and legislative branches of government have a responsibility to mobilize this country for war. They frankly have not done so. We're mortgaging our future, our children, $8 to $9 billion a month,"
WELL SAID.
So this is the fourth General...
Rumsfeld rejected Shinseki's self-serving advice to send in hundreds of thousands of soldiers because he believed, wisely, that having too many troops in theater--too large a footprint--was likely to create far worse problems than not having enough. He had to strike a balance, and he relied heavily on the advice of senior generals such as Franks and Pace.
This general needs to go home and pout in private.
somehow, given the subject and who happens to be reporting it, I'm NOT surprised to see you here....TROLL.
Maj. Gen. Batiste is a candyas$...always has been...always will be (and that is a sentiment shared by the vast majority that has either served under him or along side him). His comments above speak volumes to this fact.
Many in the old Big Green simply hate that Rumsfeld demands action and not excuses constantly. Which the old big Green has always been good at (higher-ups that is, not the boots on the ground warriors).
I'll bet a lot of your troops said the same of your leadership, and if given a forum in the driveby media there would no doubt be those who thought you were akin to a horse's patoot, herr general. I know I served under a few of lousy politicians masquarading as generals during my 26 years in the Army and the Air Force.
It seems to me that "our" elites might have bothered themselves to understand this before we undertook this mission.
Many did, but were not listened to...
(Pardon my grammer in that last sentence, please.)
""Iraqis, frankly, in my experience, do not understand democracy. Nor do they understand their responsibilities for a free society," Batiste said."
At least this one understands what underlies the so-called "quagmire".
You can't construct or build any arguments at all can you?
I mean not even once.
I also note with interest that his age is not given. He may have hit the promotion ceiling for a very good reason.
The same can be said for all the other "retired" general critics. I will give them credit for keeping their mouths shut before leaving the service.
One thing that isn't about to change soon, is civilian control of the military.
Think hillary...
I'd agree with that. They don't. That's why the United States is a big surprise when it comes to that because virtually NONE of the founding fathers had any experience either.
But if we are to EVER leave the region, ever extinguish the threat, we have to try.
Standing by them and staying strong in the fight will show them that we are, if nothing else, committed to it. They'll get the idea eventually in Iraq. I personally think it's already started, but that's just me.
I honestly don't mind that he has opinions. That isn't the problem.
I just hope he knows who he is aligning himself with. The same people who absolutely loathe the military.
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