Someone should remind Odierno that MacArthur was fired for being an insubordinate ass

by: Blue Girl

Sat Dec 13, 2008 at 19:05:34 PM CST

| More

Secretary of Defense Robert Gates paid a surprise visit to Iraq Saturday and addressed the troops at Balad Air Base in a town hall style meeting in the afternoon.  During the meeting he explained President-elect Barack Obama's vision for his proposed drawdown and said it represents a "significant change of mission."  

I don't think the new commander of MNFI likes his new mission much, tho.  General Ray Odierno, who assumed command of MNFI in September, appeared to be attempting to preemptively cut the legs out from under the new mission and questioned the new policy of pulling back from urban centers by this summer.  "We believe we should still be inside those after the summer," he told the press in advance of Gates arrival.  

Odierno said he will make recommendations soon on how many troops the U.S. can withdraw from Iraq early next year. There are now about 149,000 U.S. troops in Iraq. That is more than 10,000 higher than before the buildup President George W. Bush ordered in early 2007.

Odierno looked ahead to a series of Iraqi elections, including provincial voting in January, and said, "It's important that we maintain enough presence here that we can help them get through this year of transition."

"We don't want to take a step backward because we've made so much progress here," he added.

Oh to have been a fly on the wall when Gates landed and the two of them chatted in private...I have never been a fan of Bob Gates, but I respect him immensely for his talent, and I have every confidence that it was made very clear during that tête à tête that one of the two men in the room had the power to fire the other one, and wouldn't hesitate to do so if need be, capiche?

And when he addressed the troops later, he was not put off his message.  

The President-elect has pledged that combat forces will be withdrawn within 18 months, and to uphold the American end of the security arrangement with Iraq that mandates troops be withdrawn from urban areas by this summer would be honored, and Gates made both of those points clear.   U.S. troops will be "out of cities and populated areas" by June 30.  "That's the point at which we will have turned over all 18 provinces to provincial Iraqi control.  We are, I believe, in terms of the American commitment, in the end game here in Iraq," he said.

Gates made his statements in that calm, measured, understated "you should never fuck with me" way he has after Odierno spoke above his pay grade.

I'm sure that Gates was unequivocal in setting Odierno straight - and the fact that he has the standing to do it is another reason that the purity trolls of the left are ridiculous and should never be taken seriously when they try to talk about military matters.  Obama hasn't even taken office yet and there are hints of trouble with a four star.  How many of those idiots who went apoplectic a couple of weeks ago over the decision to keep Gates had the good sense to look at the big picture here and realize they should be glad Obama had the wise counsel to keep him on for at least a year?  (I know!  I crack me up, too!)  

I'm pretty sure that they were teaching MacArthur as a cautionary tale at the Point by the time Odierno got there in 1972, and he might do himself a favor and revisit that unit.  I'll tell you this much - if he starts zapping off emails to John Boehner, he's fucked.