When he announced the decision last Friday, Gates said that after consulting with members of the Senate he concluded that sticking with Pace would risk a Senate confirmation struggle focusing on the Iraq War.
These people will not be appeased. Giving into them is stupid. There is no way to avert this fight.
Great point. This will continue and worsen. Bush has once again caved to the Dems, this time in advance. They will want more and more.
Bush was a quick study when it came to realizing that about Islamic terrorists. Now 6 years of relentless, down in the sewer attacks against him, his family, his administration, the military, businesses, school children, the unborn...and he hasn't yet learned that appeasing the evil at home only feeds it and make it grow much, much larger?
I can only imagine the pit in Pace's belly as Gates described how he was going to take the pulse of his enemies to determine if he could stay. He would have known that second the decision had already been made.
I have no doubt this has to do with his comment about gays in the military....I wondered at the time how that came about, whether someone trying to set him up. Most probably so, but he was accurate in his assessment and should have been supported in it.
And this crap about contentious hearings being a distraction - that would have been a great time to publicly correct the sleazanators like Levin, Toon, and Kennedy. We needed an accurate assessment of both good and bad in Iraq. If Pace wasn't to get reconfirmed, he should have been allowed to go down fighting, and given a chance to expose the lies these senators spew about the war and the men and women serving in it. I used to get great enjoyment watching Rummy smack 'em around and expose their venom.
I pray General Pace does not hold his tongue during his final months, and continues to serve his country by engaging the same enemy that caused his ouster.
He also needs to repair some damage done by Murtha/Time's Political Explosive Device by clearing the embattled Marines of Kilo Company 3/1 and unmasking the treasonous pigs that started the mess and those in the DOD who are leaking classified docs and conspiring against our defenders. If Murtha feels he's still a Marine, then Pace should take this opportunity to put him in the brig - or Guantanamo.
Why in the HELL does the CJCS have to be reconfirmed every two years anyway? Why does he have to be confirmed in the first place? This makes me so mad. Why do GENERALS have to be approved by the perfumed prancing princes? Now it looks like they’re going to arrogate veto power over US attornies.
The spinelessness is amazing, isn’t it? All a democrat has to do is say he’ll block it and this President won’t even try; for a loyal Marine.
But, I’m betting it’s more than just a fight. I’m betting this Marine was traded for legislation wanted by the President.
As for loyalty, this President only demands it for himself. He doesn’t reciprocate.