Reports are that GW is looking for someone to run the Iraq operation. Does this make sense? We have a whole military command structure established to run military operations, what’s the point of an excrescence added on to it?
And, some military people must really be pissed at Bush. The report was that the job has been offered to 3 or 4 different retired 4 stars who turned it down. It is unheard of, and bad form in the extreme, to be offered a job by the President, turn it down and then blab about it thus embarassing the President.
There is, in fact, a high government official already with the responsibility of issuing directions to the Pentagon, the State Department, and other agencies.
When something goes wrong, political leaders need someone else to blame.
Someone they can fire and say to the public “It’s not my fault. Trust me. Vote for my party. Please.”
…early in the GWB administration, the military eliminated all the local/regional/theatre “CinC” designations such as CinCPac, because in the words of Rummy there is only one real C-in-C, who happens to be also the CEO.
So now the C-in-C/CEO wants to appoint a quasi-CinC/CEO to be responsible for specific trainwrecks?
GeeDubya wants more time, he still believes the Iraqture is coming, if he just holds on a bit longer, one more Friedman, perhaps two, maybe three, depends on conditions in the ground…
To that end, he offers cosmetic changes and pretends that some entirely new! improved! approach has been discovered, and this wonderful new plan just needs time to work…
In fact, I am fairly bewildered, and damn near scared, about the administration desiring to appoint a military officer who would have the ability to issue directives to civilian-controlled cabinet positions. Who the hell thought up this one? When is the coup?
The WH cannot resist the demand to change tactics. The will not accede to the demand to change tactics. So they look for innovative seeming initiatives, to look as much as possible like they are changing tactics, without actually doing any damage to the Kaiserprinzip.
Petraeus’ plan may still be in effect, and with Petraeus as effective commander, but instead of reporting to whoever, he reports to the War Czar, who then reports to the Leader. And then the Leader reports to the people. Depending on circumstances on the ground, and its potential affect on troop morale.
The officers in the article were all retired. I’m fairly certain that this is ment to be a civilian postition, albeit one that they are trying to appoint a former military officer to.
What with the military overstretched, should be a simple matter for the SDMB Liberation Front (Trotskyist) to seize the radio stations, newspapers, and train depots. Then we simply demand that GeeDubya abdicate in favor of Kucinich.
Nothing in the Constitution about “abdicate”? Who cares, we’re not literalists.