Newsweek: Bush didn't know what he was getting with selecting Bob Gates as Sec of Defense

[sabra]

http://www.newsweek.com/id/73362/page/2

<snip>

Gates is no greenhorn on Iran. During the Iran-contra scandal of the late '80s, Gates, then a senior CIA official, was accused by hard-liners of exaggerating the influence of moderates in Tehran. In 2004, he coauthored a Council on Foreign Relations report calling for a diplomatic, not a military, approach to Iran. Since then, his views on Iran have hardened a bit; still, there is some evidence to suggest that the administration did not know what it was getting with Gates. Former Carter national-security adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski told NEWSWEEK that when Rumsfeld resigned right after the 2006 election, Bush's national-security adviser, Stephen Hadley, called Brzezinski to tell him that Gates was taking over at the Pentagon. Brzezinski reminded Hadley that Gates had coauthored a report on Iran. There was a long silence. "What report on Iran?" Hadley finally asked. (Hadley did not respond to requests for comment.)

[Xipe Totec]

1. What report on Iran? OMFG!

:rofl:

[LSK]

13. these people are beyond stupid!!!

[Egnever]

2. Did they come up during his confirmation?

[BridgeTheGap]

3. What level of incompetence will they reach next?

I guess I'm glad they didn't vet him very well.

[Virginia Dare]

4. Gates is Poppy's boy, just like Powell was....n/t

[JBoy]

5. Ah, Poppy,

I'd trade "it's hard work" for "a thousand points of light" in a heartbeat.

[Virginia Dare]

6. Pretty pathetic isn't it?...n/t

[Captain Hilts]

9. Gates is his own man in a way Powell never was. nt

[Virginia Dare]

11. Which is why he's there now and Powell isn't...n/t

[Captain Hilts]

12. He's cleaned house and put admirals against the war in charge of those commands. nt

[tanyev]

7. Hmmm...how convenient would it have been if that suicide bomber

had gotten a little closer to Gates in Afghanistan?

[Captain Hilts]

8. Gates is doing a very good job. nt

[opihimoimoi]

10. The Bush Guys suffer from Information UNDER LOAD.....

[ladjf]

14. They are so busy with their cover-ups that they don't have time

to study the current situation.

[opihimoimoi]

15. Yup, they so wrapped up in Shit they don't even know it...