Obama Facing Stiff Pentagon Resistance to His Iraq Troop-Withdrawal Timetable

[ensho]

http://www.skeeterbitesreport.com/2009/02/obama-facing-stiff-pentagon-resistance.html


Pentagon Brass -- Who Never Accepted Bush's Agreement With Iraq to Pull U.S. Combat Troops Out of Iraqi Cities by Next Summer -- Lobbied Obama in Vain to Abandon Campaign Promise to Withdraw All Troops From Iraq by the Spring of Next Year; Now Sources Say Pentagon Plans Public-Relations Drive to Force Obama to Back Down


General David Petraeus, commander of U.S. military operations in the Persian Gulf region -- supported by Defense Secretary Robert Gates -- tried to convince President Obama at a White House meeting on his first full day in office January 21 that he had to back down from his campaign pledge to withdraw all U.S. combat troops from Iraq by the spring of 2010.

But Obama informed Gates, Petraeus, and Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, that he wasn't convinced and ordered Gates and the military leaders to come back quickly with a detailed 16-month withdrawal plan, according to two sources who have talked with participants in the meeting.

Obama's decision to override Petraeus' recommendation has not ended the conflict between the president and senior military officers over troop withdrawal, however. There are indications that Petraeus and his allies in the military and the Pentagon, including General Ray Odierno, now the top commander in Iraq, have already begun to try to pressure Obama to change his withdrawal policy.

A network of senior military officers is also reported to be preparing to support Petraeus and Odierno by mobilizing public opinion against Obama's decision.
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this is a meaner fight then the stimulus

how can we get the neo cons out of the pentagon?

[spanone]

1. gates & petreaus are part of the problem

[RaleighNCDUer]

2. It's all in Obama's ballpark.

Those who continue to resist, who attempt to pressure the President (who is senior to them in the chain of command) can be summarily replaced. Those who engage in political posturing by 'mobilizing public opinion' can be summarily replaced.

And Obama can do it with a word, and a stroke of a pen.

He can do with them as Truman did with McArthur, and Johnson did with LeMay. As CinC, it IS his way or the highway.

I'm sure that Obama knows this.

[Zodiak]

3. Tell them fuckers to get on the on-going abuses at guantanamo...

instead of finding ways to undermine their Commander in Chief.

This is treason, and yes, I dare call it such. Trying to mobilize public sentiment against the President is not the job of active duty officers, and they should be court-martialed. Fired at the very least.

[Ikonoklast]

4. They will find out exactly who The Boss is, with great haste.

Their legitimate concerns will be heard by President Obama.

He will take into consideration the political and logistic problems of the withdrawal timetable.

The President will then order them to implement his decision as CiC without complaint, or ask for their immediate resignation.

They will be surprised that the skinny black kid with the big ears will not stand for any of their crap.

[ensho]

5. I hope you are right

no

[sailor65]

6. Has everyone forgotten?

This is exactly what Obama wanted. He has said all along that he does not want "Yes Men" on his team, and that he wants all the contrary opinions. Gates, Petraeus, and Mullen are doing exactly as they were told to do. When the final order comes down, they will obey it.

I can't believe the number of people here calling for replacement of these people with those who will never oppose.

[ensho]

7. there is verbal opposing and there is active opposing

the officers can verbal but not active.

these officers are going active.

[RaleighNCDUer]

9. Exactly - there's a huge difference between speaking your mind in a

meeting, and trying to marshall public opinion against your C in C's policies. If they can't get in line, they need to be bounced.

If Truman can fire McArthur - the most famous, most popular, and one of the ablest generals in US history - for his public political stand against the president, Obama can certainly dump Petraeus, who isn't worthy to walk in McArthur's shadow.

[leftchick]

15. he kept them on

and now our tax payer dollars will be used in their campaign against him. Not exactly a brilliant move on obama's part.

[UTUSN]

8. Sounds like the Recession layoffs need to end some careers!1 n/t

[kentuck]

10. Nobody gives up power without a fight..

the MIC included.

[Marr]

11. I'm sorry, but the words "Pentagon" and "resistance" do not go together.

If there's reason to use the two words together, then a lot of people at the Pentagon need to fired. Period.

[EFerrari]

12. If you want to see rats jumping overboard, start some hearings on torture

and corruption at our bases in Iraq. They'll STFU.

[leftchick]

13. he chose to keep gates on

you get what you pay for.

[Fleshdancer]

14. I don't hear an alternative plan

Keeping soldiers in Iraq indefinitely isn't a plan. They're concerned about Iraqi stability after our soldiers leave, but this was the same concern voiced by people who opposed the Iraq war before it started. We knew this would be an issue before we invaded.

[Mari333]

16. the mutherf*cking 'war' was bullshit from the start!!!!

as long as the obama admin keeps legitimizing the damned thing, this is what they will run into..these goddamned neocons who think the goddamned 'war' is a legitimate enterprise..
until the Obama admin stands up and says 'this war is a pre emptive strike and occupation of a foreign country and everyone who brought us into it should be investigated, and if found guilty of any wrongdoing, prosecuted to the full extent of the law'
until they do that, these neocon idiot generals will continue to behave as tho this is some legitimate war, and continue to act like assholes.
the troops should have never been sent!! and should be home now....!
in the meantime, boot the bastards out, obama.

[sinkingfeeling]

17. Obama is Commander-in-Chief. They either obey or get ousted.