Schweitzer in the doghouse Nuland speaks undiplomatically; DoD won't mothball the George Washingto

[unhappycamper]

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2014/02/07/fps_situation_report_schweitzer_in_the_doghouse

Schweitzer in the doghouse Nuland speaks undiplomatically; DoD won't mothball the George Washington; Peace talks in Pakistan; GI Joe looks amazing at 50; The dog of war; and a bit more.
BY Gordon Lubold
FEBRUARY 7, 2014

A brigadier in the doghouse: Martin "Smoking Hot" Schweitzer disciplined by Dempsey. CNN's Barbara Starr: "Joint Chiefs Chairman Martin Dempsey has privately disciplined one of his top generals, who has been investigated by the Army for sending an inappropriate e-mail about a female member of Congress, CNN has learned. Two senior U.S. military officials said Brig. Gen. Martin P. Schweitzer was ordered by Dempsey to no longer participate in weekly briefings to Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel about the movement of troops around the world. The Pentagon has been under scrutiny for several lapses in ethical behavior among top generals and in the ranks.?Hagel has publicly made ethics a top priority."

Cutting Schweitzer out of the meeting illustrates frustration at the highest levels about ethical lapses. Starr: "It's an extraordinary action to take because Schweitzer, as deputy director of regional operations for the Joint Chiefs, oversees a highly classified briefing about information presented to Hagel weekly. It's one of the most critical briefings at the Pentagon because the secretary of defense is asked to sign each military order to send troops to any locations overseas." Schweitzer, in a statement, called his comments "a terrible attempt at humor." Details here.

What did Schweitzer say? The WaPo's Craig Whitlock, first reporting all of this Jan. 26: "...Last summer, Army prosecutors were combing through the e-mail accounts of Brig. Gen. Jeffrey A. Sinclair, a commander facing a court-martial on sexual assault, adultery and other charges, when they uncovered a raunchy exchange with two other generals. The exchange started in March 2011, when Schweitzer, then a colonel and the deputy commander for operations for the 82nd Airborne Division, held a meeting with Ellmers, a newly elected House member whose district included Fort Bragg. Schweitzer gave a pointed summary of the meeting in an e-mail to a superior, Maj. Gen. James Huggins, while copying Sinclair, then a fellow colonel and an 82nd Airborne commander.

'First - she is smoking hot,' Schweitzer wrote. 'Second - briefing went well .?.?. she was engaging .?.?. had done her homework. She wants us to know she stands with us and will work/push to get the Fort Bragg family resourced.'