Posted on 02/03/2009 2:59:49 PM PST by chevydude26
WASHINGTON, Feb 2 (IPS) - CENTCOM commander Gen. David Petraeus, supported by Defence Secretary Robert Gates, tried to convince President Barack Obama that he had to back down from his campaign pledge to withdraw all U.S. combat troops from Iraq within 16 months at an Oval Office meeting Jan. 21.
But Obama informed Gates, Petraeus and Joint Chiefs Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen that he wasn't convinced and that he wanted Gates and the military leaders to come back quickly with a detailed 16-month plan, according to two sources who have talked with participants in the meeting.
Obama's decision to override Petraeus's recommendation has not ended the conflict between the president and senior military officers over troop withdrawal, however. There are indications that Petraeus and his allies in the military and the Pentagon, including Gen. Ray Odierno, now the top commander in Iraq, have already begun to try to pressure Obama to change his withdrawal policy.
A network of senior military officers is also reported to be preparing to support Petraeus and Odierno by mobilising public opinion against Obama's decision.
Petraeus was visibly unhappy when he left the Oval Office, according to one of the sources. A White House staffer present at the meeting was quoted by the source as saying, "Petraeus made the mistake of thinking he was still dealing with George Bush instead of with Barack Obama."
Petraeus, Gates and Odierno had hoped to sell Obama on a plan that they formulated in the final months of the Bush administration that aimed at getting around a key provision of the U.S.-Iraqi withdrawal agreement signed envisioned re-categorising large numbers of combat troops as support troops. That subterfuge was by the United States last November while ostensibly allowing Obama to deliver on his campaign promise...
(Excerpt) Read more at ipsnews.net ...
Generals are American citizens, too. If anyone, including a president, did anything to put America and American soldiers in jeapardy he/she has an obligation to stand up and be counted.
Would it be treason if a general, on demand by a president, refused to kneel? Would it be treason if a general, on demand by a president, refused to use the military for political gain?
Is it not treason for a president to refuse to uphold and defend the Constitution—particularly after he has sworn to do so? The Marxist Onada has said many times the Constitution and America are flawed. And right now, right before our very eyes he is attempting to subvert the US Constitution—a form of government that has rocketed this country from colonial status to the world’s preminent economy and military power in the short span of 235 years.
I don’t hear you calling The Messiah a traitor.
This would be one legitimate court case which would have the standing required by the Supreme Court.
I was kidding, of course, about the treason thing.
“And right now, right before our very eyes he is attempting to subvert the US Constitution”
How? And please stick to subversion tactics that have not been employed by basically every president in the modern era.
Do you think Merritt Edson turned his back on his men when he resigned so he could publicly criticize Truman?
Bingo, on point as usual.
Military Commanders can not publicly campaign against the POTUS.
If they feel that strongly about it, they should as you say resign and inform the public that the POTUS is placing politics ahead of policy and the safety of the American people.
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Me thinks you are absolutely correct.
Maybe Petraeus should ask to see the birth certificate.
Just a thought...
That’s the way I see it too. That being said, I do believe that President Obama would be wise to respect and seriously consider all recommendations and opinions presented to him by our Generals. I have the utmost respect and gratitude for General Petraeus.
That’s the way I see it too. That being said, I do believe that President Obama would be wise to respect and seriously consider all recommendations and opinions presented to him by our Generals. I have the utmost respect and gratitude for General Petraeus.
You've got a point there. It makes no sense to split hairs over the niceties of individual laws if government is no longer "deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed." I'm not advocating a lawless society. I'm saying, don't arrest a jay walker when there's a felon walking free down the same street.
Thank you for stating the obvious.
Thanks for the response. I’m not comfortable with Obama as CIC, and I don’t think most of our military personnel are either, but it’s a chain of command that must respected regardless. President Obama would be wise to heed General Petraeus’s council.
As do I. I saw him on the television the other day in a group of people, and I was surprised to see he was a short person. He sure is tall in stature. His actions to get things back on track in Iraq were masterful to say the least.
When the Kenyon usurper took the oath of office under false pretenses.
Hear, hear!
I see my post to you was entered twice. I apologize for that but sure don’t know how the heck those things happen.
Yes, General Petraeus sure turned things around in Iraq. One has to wonder how many lives were saved because of his strategy. I hadn’t realized he was a short man either. He sure walks tall.
A concerted effort by Commanders to undermine the POTUS is clearly against the law.
“Excuse me, but don’t ever cross out George Bush’s name when you add the words “a patriot” to a sentence. We’re just shy of three weeks into Obama’s presidency, and the contrast between that sniveling coward and the courageous George W. Bush could NOT be more stark.”
I’ll add a “standing ovation” to jwalsh07’s, “Hear, hear!”, Wolfstar.
Are you asking "legally?" or do you mean "force?"
I was referring to a “legal” action.
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