Jed Babbin's Warnings Re: Barry McCaffrey

National Review Online ^ | March 26, 2003 | Jed Babbin

[the_doc]

You might wonder why Gen. McCaffrey--like Gen. Wesley Clark and several others--seem to be shilling for the Dems who oppose the war.

A pal of mine, who was a Navy officer at the time, told me about how the entire staff of the European command he served in was summoned on short notice for an urgent briefing one day in 1996. Seems like some bigshot White House general was coming to get everyone straightened out about life. My pal glanced at his classified files, threw them in the safe, straightened his tie, and went into the briefing room.

Forty-five minutes late, Gen. Barry McCaffrey walked in, and not to do business with the staff. McCaffrey took the occasion to lecture them roundly and soundly about how the kiddie corral that made up the Clinton White House were the best and brightest ever, and how the assembled officers should be proud to serve under such a president.

McCaffrey--once Clinton's drug czar--had been seduced, and remains so. His judgment, like Clark's (who wants to be the Dem candidate for president), is entirely suspect.

[the_doc]

If I am not mistaken, Jed Babbin was the first to say that going to war without the French is like going deer hunting without an accordion.

[Izzy Dunne]

Jed Babbin was the first to say that going to war without the French is like going deer hunting without an accordion.

I saw a post yesterday that attributed that little pearl to Norman Schwarzkopf.
I don't know one way or the other.

[the_doc]

FYI.

[guitfiddlist]

I remember when I first heard General McCafferty's lamentations a few days ago - I was worried - but something nudged the back of my mind concerning his name. And when reminded by articles like these, that he was Clinton's little waterboy on the "drug war" - all concern left my mind.

[Grampa Dave]

Doc, thanks for posting this great find and pinging me!

[the_doc]

But I have also heard it attributed to Rumsfeld. I think it's more likely that some of the more prominent guys are getting credit for something which was first said by someone out of the main limelight.

[michaelt]

Man, I had a feeling that McCaffery had been Clintonized. We all know Clark was.

[Rammer]

Wasn't McCaffrey the general that had a hand in letting several Iraqi divisions escape and "live to fight another day" at the end of the Gulf War in 1991? There seems to be some blame game about that - Powell and Schwarzkopf and Bush Sr. all seem to have played a part as well. I think the very divisions that "got away" are now arrayed around Baghdad, getting bombed to smithereens.

Anybody know the story on that?

[the_doc]

You may be right. I'll have to defer to others for more info.

[dennisw]

Gen. Barry McCaffrey is making the rounds with his Iraq doom and gloom scenario. Especially at MSNBC and Chris Mathews' show.

I do agree with McCaffrey and his ilk that it may be best to lay seige to Bagdhad and wait 2-3 weeks for the rest of our forces to arrive in Kuwait City and mobilize into Iraq.....

[ken5050]

A little background info for you. McCaffrey's corps destroyed a retreating Republican Guard division "after" the cease-fire went into effect. If you recall, after the supposed "horrors" of the "highway of death", Bush was persuaded by Powell to end the war. McCaffrey's corps was posed to intercept the retreating RG troops. After receiving the cease fire notification, his spearheads came into contact with some of the RG troops. McCaffrey felt that he could not trust the Iraqis to obey the cease-fire, that they represented a threat to his forces, so he wiped out a division. It's a little reported factoid. I believe that he behaved correctly, but it's also why he was forced to retire. So that may explain some of his resentment to Powell/Bush I. And then Bubba gave him another chance, as the drug czar.

[the_doc]

it may be best to lay seige to Bagdhad and wait 2-3 weeks for the rest of our forces to arrive in Kuwait City and mobilize into Iraq.....

Perzackly.

[geedee]

Like others, I was surprised to see where a "four-star" general had strongly challenged our war plans . . . until I learned his name. McCaffrey, for all those who feed at his trough, should remember how he ran the War on Drugs. If that fiasco, in McCaffrey's mind, was a strong campaign, I say we're better off listening to Martin Sheen about how to run a foreign campaign than we are to this particular general.

Doc, this is a great, great post! At this critical time it's imperative that we refute all those who would sow seeds of discontent. We have warriors dying, they need our support . . . not our doubts. I salute you!

[BluH2o]

And when reminded by articles like these, that he was Clinton's little waterboy on the "drug war" - all concern left my mind.

Early on in the Clinton adminisration McCaffrey was accosted in the WH by a female flunkie (Lewinski wannabe) who told him they didn't appreciate him wearing his Army uniform in their presence. Later, McCaffrey became Clinton's drug czar ...

[the_doc]

I should mention that I doubt that it will take more than five or six days.

[BluH2o]

Man, I had a feeling that McCaffery had been Clintonized. We all know Clark was.

Clark, at least, has an excuse ... he's from Little Rock, Arkansas, and a former Rhodes Scholar (who, incidently, actually completed his studies). McCaffrey, on the other hand, had nothing in common with Clinton.

[the_doc]

Thanks. I thought it was an important comment about McCaffrey by a knowledgeable DoD ex, even if it a was pretty brief comment. (My brother alerted me to the article via e-mail this morning.)

[rangerX]

I was there for this action. I also have mixed feelings about whether he was correct in it or not. I could clearly hear bleedover from the scouts on my radio freq for fire support, and heard many repeated commands given to the scouts to "get them to shoot at you." It was a carefully laid ambush, with essentially 10 battalions of artillery and 2 Apache squadrons ready to fire on the division that was retreating. It was a slaughter.

Personally, I think that it should never have had to happen, since the 24th would have slammed the door on these guys had there not been about a 5 hour delay in movement due to the misinterpretation of the movement halt time. We stopped about 20 miles from Basra at midnight, and could have kept going till 0800. I don't really think this action, or the command and control failures, had any impact on McCaffrey, since he was a two-star during DS1, and retired as a four-star.

[the_doc]

The very fact that Clark was a Rhodes Scholar makes him suspect, IMO. The majority of Rhodes Scholar are hand-picked for brainwashing.

My concern about McCaffrey centers on the allegations which Babbin is making. McCaffrey never should have praised his Commander-in-Chief in the way he supposedly did. The issues of respect for the Presidency aside, Clinton was an inarguably awful President. The fact that Clinton was Commander-in-Chief was a disgrace upon America. The overwhelming majority of military men knew that.