Posted on 05/12/2016 7:35:54 PM PDT by Kush
WASHINGTON (AP) The Navy has fired the commander of the 10 American sailors who wandered into Iranian territorial waters in the Persian Gulf and were captured and held by Iran for about 15 hours.
In a statement Thursday, the Navy said it had lost confidence in Cmdr. Eric Rasch, who was the executive officer of the squadron that included the 10 sailors at the time of the January incident. He was responsible for the training and readiness of the more than 400 sailors in the unit.
A Navy official said Rasch failed to provide effective leadership, leading to a lack of oversight, complacency and failure to maintain standards in the unit. The official was not authorized to discuss the details publicly so spoke on condition of anonymity.
(Excerpt) Read more at yahoo.com ...
Except that snakes like JAGs, stick up for each other.
The XO...This is total BS. The captain goes down with the ship.
Sadly, in the Obama era military, that isn’t true.
Well, not in the traditional sense.
This is how Obama and political correctness will get soldiers killed.
What were his ROE’s? What would the political hacks in the Pentagon or the White House had done if Cmdr Rasch instead opened fire and sunk the Iranian ships? Obama would be pissing himself with anger at the Navy. I believe the sailors were in a no-win situation caused by their leaders.
I wonder if the real story will ever be revealed.
This C.I.C is above the law.
They fired the EXECUTIVE Officer, but not the commanding officer?
Not Obola’s admiral in charge of the area?
Not the squadron (next higher) commanding officer?
brotherhoods @DC must have tipped off their coordinates...
You can’t fire anyone in the military but when you do a search o Cmdr. Eric Rasch every damn article says fired.
Damn, you beat me to it. I too felt the statement fit odumbo to a “T” yet he remains at his post and nothing is said.
“Firing means out of the navy or demoted but still in the navy”?.........
I take it to mean he has been relieved of duty as the “commander” of that particular group. Most definitely it will be the end of his career, he might as well resign.
“The XO who happens to be a Commander, isnt the Commanding Officer of the unit. They fired the wrong man”....
They fired the wrong man alright, odumbo is the one who allowed this to happen. A REAL CIC would have had those sailors out of their long before the Iranians even knew they were there.
Did he draw the short straw in the lottery to pick Obama’s scapegoat?
In the Navy that I was in, the Commanding Officer, is ALWAYS responsible, not the XO.
Did they not have a COMPASS?
Certainly possible.
Two options:
1. The military leaders were so smart as to plan a mission where our guys get captured on purpose so they can gather intelligence.
or
2. The military leaders are just incompetent.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.