Inside the Ring

The Washington Times ^ | Oct. 3, 2003 | By Bill Gertz and Rowan Scarborough

[inPhase]

Elusive report Ever since The Washington Times disclosed a secret Pentagon "lessons learned" report Sept. 3, House Democrats have tried to get a copy. But they keep being blocked by the Defense Department and the Republicans. ...

One part of the report says, "Late formation of DoD [Phase 4] organizations, limited time available for the development of detailed plans and pre-deployment coordination. Command relationships (and communication requirements) and responsibilities were not clearly defined for DoD organizations until shortly before [the war] commenced." ...

The Pentagon initially responded to The Times story by saying the report reflected the military's tradition of being "brutally honest" so mistakes are not repeated. After a few weeks, however, the spin turned to casting doubt on the report's accuracy and saying, "It's only a draft." ...

"General Clark was the leading cheerleader within the [Joint Chiefs of Staff] for the Clinton plan," said the official, who sat in on one meeting when it was made clear to all present that the public position of only a year was a ruse. ...

He's back Col. Douglas A. Macgregor drove the Army top brass crazy in the late 1990s with publication of his "Breaking the Phalanx: A New Design for Landpower in the 21st Century." ...

Blair to IDA Retired Adm. Dennis Blair, the former head of the U.S. Pacific Command, is expected to become the new chief of the Pentagon's think tank, the Institute for Defense Analyses, or IDA. The IDA provides its analyses to the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Joint Staff, the unified commanders and defense agencies on national security issues. The institute's most recent focus has been on terrorism and defense transformation.

Adm. Blair has worked on the Joint Staff, with the CIA and with National Security Council staff. He will replace retired Air Force Gen. Larry D. Welch, the current IDA president.

[inPhase]

snippets

"lessons learned" Pentagon report

new book, "Transformation Under Fire: Revolutionizing How America Fights." It is endorsed by former Republican House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Rep. Jim Cooper

Retired Adm. Dennis Blair, the former head of the U.S. Pacific Command, is expected to become the new chief of the Pentagon's think tank, the Institute for Defense Analyses, or IDA. The IDA provides its analyses to the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Joint Staff, the unified commanders and defense agencies on national security issues.

He will replace retired Air Force Gen. Larry D. Welch, the current IDA president.

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