Bush Nominates Retired General for Army Chief of Staff

Department of Defense ^ | June 17th, 2003 | Armed Forces Information Service

[magellan]

Bush Nominates Retired General for Army Chief of Staff American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, June 17, 2003 – President Bush has nominated retired Gen. Peter J. Schoomaker to be the next Army chief of staff.

Schoomaker retired in November 2000 as the commander U.S. Special Operations Command at MacDill Air Force Base, Fla.

The Senate must confirm Schoomaker before he can take up his new duties.

This is only the second time that a president has reached into retired ranks for a high-ranking military position. Army Gen. Maxwell Taylor was retired when President John F. Kennedy asked him to serve as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in 1962.

Schoomaker was commissioned via ROTC in June 1969. Early in his career, he served in Germany and Korea. In 1978, he became commander, 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment (Airborne) at Fort Bragg, N.C.

He was part of the unsuccessful rescue attempt of the American hostages taken by radical students in Iran in 1980. Eight Americans died and five were wounded at the Desert One refueling site in Iran. In a 1999 Soldiers magazine article, Schoomaker said that the failures of that rescue attempt led to the formation of the U.S. Special Operations Command.

Schoomaker had several assignments with the Joint Special Operations Command at Fort Bragg throughout the 1980s and served on the Long Commission to investigate the October 1983 terrorist bombing of the Marine Barracks in Beirut.

He was appointed commander of U.S. Special Operations Command in 1997.

Among his decorations he has received the Distinguished Service Medal (with Oak Leaf Cluster), the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Legion of Merit and two Bronze Stars.

Schoomaker, 57, is a master parachutist and has received the Combat Infantryman Badge.

(Based on biographical data from the Department of the Army.)

[magellan]

This is Rumsfeld's second big "my way or the highway", transform or else to the Army's leadership. Rumsfeld does not have enough confidence in the Army's current three and four star generals to appoint one as Army COS.

Rumsfeld's first shot was to appoint James Roche, the current Secretary of the Air Force to replace Thomas White as Secretary of the Army.

[caisson71]

I don't think current officers want the job. Why should they when they have to take tongue lashings from the likes of Leaky Leahy, Neil Adercrombie, etc. and the rest of the liberal establishment who do not hold a candle to these accomplished men? They all have accomplished careers and would rather retire on their long records than on some congressman's political headrolling.

[Archangelsk]

Posted here http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/926631/posts a few days back.

[Cicero]

That was the Washington Post article; this is the Defense Department release.

I had a look at the other thread. Some interesting talk but no insights into Schoomaker. Does anyone know what sort of man he is? I would also read this as Rummy's attempt to bypass the clintonoid timeservers in the Pentagon and appoint someone who is willing to help him clean out the stables. Too bad Tommy Franks decided not to take the job, but maybe Schoomaker is good. I can't imagine that Rumfeld would make a weak appointment to this post at this time.

[nothingnew]

Wonder if his kids have any schoos?

FMCDH

[Happy2BMe]

"This is Rumsfeld's second big "my way or the highway", transform or else to the Army's leadership. Rumsfeld does not have enough confidence in the Army's current three and four star generals to appoint one as Army COS."

So does this mean our U.S. Armed Forces WON'T BE WEARING THE U.N. SHIELD on their berets at least for the next two years?

[Prodigal Son]

Fellow was an original member of Delta Force wasn't he? Interesting.

[Happy2BMe]

Rumsfeld's New Man
The latest move to radically remake the Army.
By Fred Kaplan
Updated Tuesday, June 10, 2003, at 4:04 PM PT

Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld's reputed choice to be the new Army chief of staff—retired Gen. Peter J. Schoomaker—may be his most intriguing appointment to date, and confirms beyond any doubt Rummy's determination to foment a radical restructuring of the Army.

The first unusual thing about Schoomaker—and I should caution here that it has not yet been confirmed whether he'll take the job—is that he is a retired general. He left the military three years ago. Usually, chiefs of staff are named from the ranks of active-duty generals.

The second, and most telling, point is that, from the early 1980s on, Schoomaker served with the "shadow soldiers," rising in 1994 to be head of the U.S. Joint Special Operations Command and then, from 1997 till his retirement, commander in chief of the Army's Special Operations Forces. [Correction, June 11, 2003: On his retirement, Schoomaker was the commander in chief of special operations forces for all the U.S. armed services, not just the Army's.]

He also had experience with tanks (with the 8^th Army in Korea in the mid '70s; as assistant commander of the 1^st Cavalry Division in the early '90s) and inside the bureaucracy (a mid '90s stint as deputy director of Army operations). But Rumsfeld clearly hired Schoomaker (pronounced "Shoemaker") for embodying the vision of what he wants the Army to become—a smaller, lighter, more agile force.

In fact, Schoomaker appears to have played a major, behind-the-scenes role in creating that vision. He has long been good friends with Gen. Tommy Franks, the Rumsfeld favorite who, as head of U.S. Central Command, led the battle for Afghanistan and Gulf War II. According to a Chicago Tribune story last March, Franks was having trouble coming up with a good war plan for Afghanistan—Rumsfeld thought his initial ideas were too bulky and time-consuming—until he had a crucial lunch in Tampa, Fla., with Schoomaker.

That lunch strongly influenced Franks' subsequent thinking on how to plan that war. Schoomaker wouldn't tell the Tribune what was discussed, but two things can be noted. First, he did describe Franks as "a quick study" who "understands joint warfare." Second, the key and quite novel ingredient in Afghanistan was the use of Army special-operations forces in the lead role—their ability to get to a war zone very quickly, their standard practice of operating in small teams, and finally the potent image of the special-ops soldier riding horseback and zapping targeting data from the laptop in his backpack to an unmanned video drone in the sky.

Schoomaker once wrote, "There will be fewer wars in the future, but there will be more conflict." As a result, conventional Army forces must "become more like" special-ops forces. "A unique feature of Special Operations Forces ... ," he wrote elsewhere, "is that they routinely deploy in small teams," which allows them "to conduct their missions with a low profile"—a trait "that often appeals to U.S. diplomatic and military teams overseas, our theater commander-in-chiefs, and, in many cases, host nations."

It's a trait that appeals to Donald Rumsfeld and others who seek a "transformation" in the Army's organization, as well.

Schoomaker has also talked of the need to train soldiers to be combat-ready "warrior-diplomats," which is what special-ops forces often are. Certainly in Iraq—before, during, and after Gulf War II—the special forces have played both roles very well. Regular Army soldiers, on the other hand, have been great as warriors, not so great as diplomats (meaning, in this context, cops or nation-builders). Perhaps Rumsfeld wants to pluck Schoomaker from retirement because he knows that, in this new world, they need to learn how to be both.

[Correction, June 11, 2003: On his retirement, Schoomaker was the commander in chief of special operations forces for all the U.S. armed services, not just the Army's.]

[Happy2BMe]

RESUME OF SERVICE CAREER OF

PETER JAN SCHOOMAKER

MAJOR GENERAL

 

DATE AND PLACE OF BIRTH

12 February 1946, Detroit, Michigan

 

YEARS OF ACTIVE COMMISSIONED SERVICE

Over 26

 

PRESENT ASSIGNMENT

Commanding General, Joint Special Operations Command, United States Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg, North Carolina 28307-5000, since July 1994

 

MILITARY SCHOOLS ATTENDED

Armor Officer Basic Course

United States Marine Corps Amphibious War School

United States Army Command and General Staff College

National War College

 

EDUCATIONAL DEGREES

University of Wyoming - BS Degree - Education Administration

Central Michigan University - MA Degree - Management

 

FOREIGN LANGUAGE(S) None recorded

 

MAJOR DUTY ASSIGNMENTS

 

Jun 69 - Sep 69

Student, Armor Officer Basic Course, United States Army Armor School, Fort Knox, Kentucky

 

Sep 69 - Dec 69

Student, Ranger and Airborne Courses, United States Army Infantry School, Fort Benning, Georgia

 

Jan 70 - Apr 71

Reconnaissance Platoon Leader, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2d Battalion, 4th Infantry, Fort Campbell, Kentucky

 

Apr 71 - Jun 72

Rifle Company Commander, C Company, 2d Battalion, 4th Infantry Division, United States Army Europe and Seventh Army, Germany

 

Jun 72 - Apr 73

Assistant S-3 (Operations), later S-4 (Logistics), Headquarters Troop, 1st Squadron, 2d Armored Cavalry Regiment, United States Army Europe and Seventh Army, Germany

 

Apr 73 - Jun 74

Commander, Troop C, 1st Squadron, 2d Armored Cavalry Regiment, United States Army Europe and Seventh Army, Germany

 

Jun 74 - Nov 74

Assistant Inspector General, 2d Infantry Division, Eighth United States Army, Korea

 

Nov 74 - Jul 75

S-3 (Operations), 1st Battalion, 73d Armor, 2d Infantry Division, Eighth United States Army, Korea

 

Aug 75 - Jun 76

Student, United States Marine Amphibious Warfare Course, United States Marine Corps Amphibious Warfare School, Quantico, Virginia

 

Jul 76 - Feb 78

Assignment Officer, Officer Personnel Management Directorate, United States Army Military Personnel Center, Alexandria, Virginia

 

Feb 78 - Aug 81

Commander, 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment (Airborne), Fort Bragg, North Carolina

 

Aug 81 - Jun 82

Student, United States Army Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

 

Jun 82 - Aug 83

Executive Officer, 2d Squadron, 2d Armored Cavalry Regiment, United States Army Europe and Seventh Army, Germany

 

Aug 83 - Oct 83

Special Operations Officer, J-3, Joint Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg, North Carolina

 

Oct 83 - Feb 84

Temporary duty on the Department of Defense Commission on United States Marine Corps Terrorist Incident in Beirut, Lebanon, Beirut, Lebanon

 

Feb 84 - Aug 85

Special Operations Officer, J-3, Joint Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg, North Carolina

 

Aug 85 - Aug 88

Various Command Positions, 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment, Fort Bragg, North Carolina

 

Aug 88 - Jun 89

Student, National War College, Fort McNair, Washington, DC

 

Jun 89 - Jul 92

Commander, Combat Applications Group (Airborne), Fort Bragg, North Carolina

 

Jul 92 - Jul 93

Assistant Division Commander, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas

 

Jul 93 - Jul 94

Deputy Director of Operations, Readiness and Mobilization, Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Plans, United States Army, Washington, DC

 

PROMOTIONS AND DATES OF APPOINTMENT

 

2LT 1 Jun 69

1LT 4 Jun 70

CPT 4 Jun 71

MAJ 13 Jul 79

LTC 1 Jul 85

COL 1 Jun 90

BG 1 Jan 93

MG 1 Mar 96

 

US DECORATIONS AND BADGES

Defense Superior Service Medal (with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters)

Legion of Merit (with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters)

Bronze Star Medal (with Oak Leaf Cluster)

Defense Meritorious Service Medal (with Oak Leaf Cluster)

Meritorious Service Medal (with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters)

Joint Service Commendation Medal

Joint Service Achievement Medal

Master Parachutist Badge

Combat Infantryman Badge

Ranger Tab

Special Forces Tab

 

SOURCE OF COMMISSION ROTC

 

SUMMARY OF JOINT ASSIGNMENTS

 

Army Special Operations Officer J-3 (Operations), Joint Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg, North Carolina

Aug 83 - Oct 83 Major

 

Temporary duty on the Department of Defense Commission on United States Marine Corps Terrorist Incident in Beirut, Lebanon, Beirut, Lebanon (Long Commission) (No joint credit)

Oct 83 - Feb 84 Major

 

Army Special Operations Officer J-3 (Operations), Joint Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg, North Carolina

Feb 84 - Aug 85 Major/Lieutenant Colonel

 

Commanding General, Joint Special Operations Command, United States Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg, North Carolina

Jul 94 - Present Major General

 

As of 11 April 1996

 

Back to U.S. Special Operations Home Page

[BenR2]

This is Rumsfeld's second big "my way or the highway", transform or else to the Army's leadership. Rumsfeld does not have enough confidence in the Army's current three and four star generals to appoint one as Army COS.

Rumsfeld's first shot was to appoint James Roche, the current Secretary of the Air Force to replace Thomas White as Secretary of the Army.

//////////////////
Let's hope Rumsfeld's "my way" is the RIGHT way for the Army to go. (From my sources, I am picking up that there is a feeling by many EVEN AT THE LOWER OFFICER LEVELS of the Army that Rumsfeld hates THE ARMY -- and not JUST the upper echelons of leadership.)

Oh, and I voted for Bush.

[BenR2]

Why should they when they have to take tongue lashings from the likes of Leaky Leahy, Neil Adercrombie, etc. and the rest of the liberal establishment who do not hold a candle to these accomplished men?

//////////////
Excuse me, but apparently you haven't heard of the tongue-lashings many of them have to endure from RUMSFELD. (And they don't like those, either.)

[BenR2]

I can't imagine that Rumfeld would make a weak appointment to this post at this time.

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On the contrary, like many strong leaders, he might easily be tempted to surround himself with pliable yes-men.

Whatever Shinseki was, he was no yes-man. Neither was Franks, who basically told Rumsfeld to stick the job in his ear.

[BenR2]

So does this mean our U.S. Armed Forces WON'T BE WEARING THE U.N. SHIELD on their berets at least for the next two years?


//////////////////
Somehow, I doubt it. I believe that Rummy is a member of at least one of those murky "one-world" organizations, such as the CFR or the Tri-Lateral Commission.

[BenR2]

Fellow was an original member of Delta Force wasn't he? Interesting.


//////////////////
Schoomaker's Special Ops credentials are in no way lacking. Apparently, Special Ops is the ONLY thing Rummy seems to like about the Army.

There is a GROWING role for Special Forces in today's world.

Just the same, we need a NUMBER of HEAVY DIVISIONS for various possible scenarios that could arise (say, CHINA).

[BenR2]

Perhaps Rumsfeld wants to pluck Schoomaker from retirement because he knows that, in this new world, they need to learn how to be both.

////////////
No grunt should be expected to be a "diplomat."

His job is too charge machine gun nests -- even if it kills him.

Yes, Special Forces are required to be diplomats in uniform.

Once again, class, repeat after me: The Army is MORE than simply SPECIAL FORCES. (But, does RUMMMY understand this?)

[Prodigal Son]

CHINA

Hmmm. We disagree here. I see us destroying China without committing any heavy force on the ground.

For what it's worth, I don't think Rumsfeld hates the Army. I think Rumsfeld is a shrewd businessman. He sees the SpecOps as being a heavy investment as far as dollars spent per man trained. He wants to get the maximum output from his star players. If you pay A-Rod a quarter of billion you want him to hit homers.

We are no longer in the Cold War age. Many of our rivals still are, but we have reached a new level. Our military capability and force structure should reflect that.

[Archangelsk]

Quoth one guy talking to a crowd at the tin shack at Camp Mackall, "if you fall asleep, he will rip your head off reach down your neck and pull your (expletive) heart out."

Does that help? :-)

[Happy2BMe]

I attribute our historical successes in Iraq at least as much to General Tommy Franks as I do to Rumsfeld.

[caisson71]

Tongue lashings from superiors are a way of life in the military - you won't find a senior officer without hemorrhoids. However, a good tongue lashing from a COMPETENT superior doesn't smart as does one from political idiots who have been proven wrong time and again, have a very politically driven agenda (nothing to do with fact of the matter)and only aim to embarrass rather than resolve/instruct.