Report: U.S. commander is dressed down (Gen. George Casey)

[sabra]

http://www.sciencedaily.com/upi/?feed=TopNews&article=UPI-1-20050813-21564800-bc-britain-troops.xml

Report: U.S. commander is dressed down
LONDON, Aug. 13 (UPI) -- Bush administration officials have privately rebuked a top U.S. commander in Iraq for publicly discussing troop reductions, The Sunday Telegraph reported.

Gen. George Casey -- who commands the ground forces in Iraq -- recently said troop levels might be reduced by 30,000, from the current 138,000, early in 2006. President George W. Bush said during the past week that any talk of reducing the U.S. military force in Iraq was just speculation.

The Sunday Telegraph said Casey's dressing down came as Iraqi politicians and clerics working on a new constitution faced a Monday deadline -- still at odds over autonomy demands by disparate factions.

Iraqi President Jalal Talabani said the draft constitution would be ready Sunday. Other participants in the discussion were less optimistic, the newspaper reported.

[annabanana]

1. yeah.. God forbid we should find out anything that's going on..

Americans must be treated like mushrooms
(kept in the dark and fed manure)

[DoYouEverWonder]

2. OMG, he must have told the truth

We can't have that now can we?

[Pirate Smile]

7. You get fired for that in this administration. Big Lies get you medals

and promotions.

I can't believe the General didn't get that memo.

[VegasWolf]

57. Quick, shoot the meesenger!! nt

[grytpype]

3. Damn. Who is gonna tell Bush we're losing?

There are a lot of articles for Sunday with super bad news. Bush is going to have to start sleeping in Cheney's bunker.

[shanti]

4. another one?

they don't tolerate ANY dissent, particularly in their military ranks.

[Lasher]

5. Troop Levels in Iraq

Uh, haven't Dubya and Rummy often said that they knew we had enough troops in Iraq, because none of the commanders there had said otherwise? How could they? There's obviously a gag order. Casey's going to be shown the door soon, watch and see.

[Burried News]

6. You beat me to it. In every discussion of troop levels the mantra has been

that it is up to the commander on the ground. Two faced lying bastards using everyone as a buffer between themselves and responsibility.

[VegasWolf]

58. Children can you say, "Fucking lying hypocrits!!" nt

[tabasco]

8. One thing that is not speculation. Bush will fill lots of coffins.

[Faygo Kid]

9. Sadly, your post cuts to the chase.

You are absolutely right. Let's hope the American people say no. Is that enough?

[Cocoa]

10. this is an elaborate deception

there is no plan to reduce troop numbers.

Casey did exactly what the Bush administration told him to do: lied and said there was such a plan.

There is no discord between Casey and Bush. This is also a lie, intended to give the appearance that there is some kind of internal debate going on about troop levels.

There is no debate, the decision has been made, we're staying in Iraq, we're going to be there for years, at the current level or higher.

[The_Casual_Observer]

12. Elaborate deception- or incompetence?

I would guess that things are so fucked up that they don't know who is saying what. As they say, telling the truth is easy, because you don't have to keep track of the lies you have told in the past.

[Jane Austin]

13. How do you know all this?

Can you give us some links or sources?

Thanks.

[Cocoa]

14. just a hypothesis

that will be need to be tested over time.

When the idea was floated in the winter (I think it was also George Casey) that there were plans to reduce troops by this summer, my hypothesis was that there were no such plans, it was just talk, and that guess proved correct.

We'll see how this one goes...

edit: also, look at the source...

[Jane Austin]

15. Thanks for explaning.

n/t

[Warren Stupidity]

55. Just go read the pnac documents

Everyone pretends that it is some great mystery why we knocked over saddam and occupied Iraq. They told us exactly why they were going to do this, and then they went and did it. They intended to, and have, established permanent garrisons in Iraq, permanent for the duration of the oil wars, in order to control the critical oil resources of the middle east. They have no intention of leaving until the oil is gone.

[Iowa]

11. Dems should start planting the seed...

that more young Americans must die so the WH can time troop withdrawals to coincide with the 2006 elections. Troops must die so Republicans politicians can win.

[rodeodance]

16. Bush slaps down top general after he calls for troops to be pulled out

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/08/14/wirq14.xml&sSheet=/news/2005/08/14/ixworld.html

Bush slaps down top general after he calls for troops to be pulled out of Iraq

By Philip Sherwell in Washington
(Filed: 14/08/2005)

The top American commander in Iraq has been privately rebuked by the Bush administration for openly discussing plans to reduce troop levels there next year, The Sunday Telegraph has learned.

President George W Bush personally intervened last week to play down as "speculation" all talk of troop pull-outs because he fears that even discussing options for an "exit strategy" implies weakening resolve.


Gen George Casey, the US ground commander in Iraq, was given his dressing-down after he briefed that troop levels - now 138,000 - could be reduced by 30,000 in the early months of next year as Iraqi security forces take on a greater role.

The unusual sign of US discord came as Iraqi politicians and clerics drafting a new constitution continued their own wrangling over autonomy demands by various factions........

[rodeodance]

17. the Mililtary can not be maintained at these levels in Iraq

Politically, the administration will be under pressure to signal a significant cut in the US presence by autumn next year to help Republicans fighting mid-term elections in November 2006. Military commanders, however, also need to wind down numbers, the imperative that prompted Gen Casey's comments, according to Dan Goure, a Pentagon adviser and vice-president of the Lexington Institute defence think-tank.

"It's number-driven," Mr Goure said. "The military can only maintain these levels in Iraq if it has absolutely no choice. Otherwise, the current pattern of rotations and other commitments mean that they will have to lower numbers."

There will, in any case, be a short-term increase in US troop levels to cover the Iraq elections scheduled for December. After that, said Mr Goure, the military has drawn up three broad strategies for cutting troops.

[hadrons]

18. hints, hints, hints ....

lots of them this week; Dumbya hinting about striking Iran and the brass hinting about 'let's get the f*ck outta here!!!'

[rodeodance]

19. The headline was wonderful--have to wonder if Gen. Casey is more

than a bit perturbed at BushCo---as Casey knows the situation of the miliatary--the troops rotation scedule and the idea of sending some back the 2nd or 3rd time will NOT be tolerated by the US foot troops. I think 'patriotism' has its limits when it comes to this.

[0007]

20. The Generals better ask permission to go to the bathroom

or junior will get mad.

And we Americans wonder whats wrong with this country and why we're the most hated nation on this planet.

Get smart and protest this dictatorship. Stand up to the two footer from Texas.

[blackhorse]

29. Bingo

One of Bush's early actions was to abolish the title "Commander in Chief" (CinC) for senior generals running large commands (CinCPac was CinC Pacific, etc.) Now, there is only one person meant by the title CinC: Bush. It bothered him to have that title shared, even when there was a clear distinction in meaning. Funny how it didn't bother previous presidents.

BH

[Auntie Bush]

41. I can understand how Bush feels.

No DICTATOR wants to have someone else called CinC.
That would suggest someone else had equal military power and he wants all to know he is top dog-in-Chief. Also known as Chimp-in-chief!

[54anickel]

51. I missed that one. Thanks for the info. Another one I'll try to dig up

to share with the Repug B-i-L.

[Dogmudgeon]

59. We have a WINNER!

This change of nomenclature ought to be used as a Democratic talking point, especially with the military -- but also with the anti-war Lefties who haven't picked up on it yet. It is one of the most craven gestures of autocratic conceit that any President has ever made.

"The first major military decision Bush made was to abolish the title of 'Commander-In-Chief' for the Generals holding regional commands. No longer would there be a CinCPAC for the Pacific, CenComPAC for the Middle East -- all knees would bend, all heads would bow before the One Supreme Annointed Commander-in-Chief, George Bush!"

--p!

[Dogmudgeon]

21. George Bush really MUST be a Manly Man!

He backstabs the CIA, and now he's been playing spanksies with his Generals.

I hope he thanks God in his bedtime prayers every night that this isn't a real third-world dictatorship, or he would be the first one in history to be deposed by a left-wing military coup.

Y'know ... when you appoint someone like a General, you just don't treat him/her like a naughty child in front of the Press Corps, let alone in front of the General's command subordinates. That's standard protocol. When the President has to pull back on the reins, it should be in private, and done with the trappings of consultation, not punishment. Even when Douglas MacArthur assumed god-like powers in Japan, Truman didn't humiliate him when he relieved him of command.

More to the point was Jimmy Carter's response to Gen. John K. Singlaub. Singlaub was a war hero, but he had begun dissing President Carter in public, notably during an address to the graduating class at West Point (IIRC). The right wingers tried to make hay with that one, but it didn't work.

When you dedicate your entire adult life to your country through military service in a democracy, I think at least a little deference is earned. Only Great Britain comes close to the USA in turning out military leaders who have a respect for democracy and civil command of the military.

Just who lied extravagantly on TV to hustle us into that poisonous clusterfuck, anyway?

Thus ends my rant.

--p!

[cmd]

22. He'll gladly point out to you that he's the president and

he can do anything.

edit: The day he is brought down cannot come soon enough.

[Art_from_Ark]

24. MacArthur wasn't relieved because of his "god-like" power in Japan

He was relieved because he wanted to attack the Chinese mainland during the Korean War and had been a vocal critic of Truman's war policies.

[Dogmudgeon]

28. I wasn't aware of that

I'll have to read up on that part of history. I have so many holes in my study of history to fill in!

I knew he wanted to attack China, and I also heard he wanted to use "The Atomic Bomb", but I had been under the impression he was still the military overseer of Japan during the Korean War.

--p!

[blackhorse]

32. I think the clincher

. . . was that McArthur forgot the oldest rule in the military book, that being when a decision has been rendered, it is time to stop grousing and follow the order. IMO, Truman perceived McArthur's failure to heed this "rule" as insubordination (and quite possibly believed that failure to restrain a senior general exhibiting such behavior might generate a threat to the Constitution).

BH

[pfitz59]

60. MacArthur wanted to nuke China........

Truman said "NO!" MacArthur tried a Congressional end run. Truman fired him.

[montana_hazeleyes]

25. This little bogus, full of himself punk,

probably doesn't thank God for anything. I bet he thinks even God ought to bow down to him and kiss his ass.

[rodeodance]

45. oh but 'saving face' (resolve) is more important. This story proves it.

....Y'know ... when you appoint someone like a General, you just don't treat him/her like a naughty child in front of the Press Corps, let alone in front of the General's command subordinates.

[teryang]

23. The military is run for the benefit of corporations, not the nation...

...just the same as the rest of our so called government. It's the gilded age, only corporate CEOs and lobbyists have a say.

[HeeBGBz]

26. Don't you know those generals are fed up

Being ordered around by an AWOL chimp chickenhawk.

[wakeme2008]

35. They hate rummy and what he has done to the military

and they are growing more and more upset with *.

[nookiemonster]

39. Yep, and "4 stars" aren't created overnight.

This brass has the power to do something about this mess. I only hope that they are concerned more about the country they promised to protect, instead of their pensions.

Unfortunately, it would require a patriot to pull something like that off and I just don't see it with these enablers.

[rodeodance]

42. Yes, I think this Gen will be pissed!!!!--His agenda is the for the good

of the military--while Bushco is for himself. This is the beginning of the 'civil war' between the WH and military in Irag. Get out the popcorn.

[Teaser]

27. The military will mutiny

if Bush insists on grinding them to dust in Iraq.

This was a warning shot from Casey.

[Dogmudgeon]

31. They won't mutiny -- they'll muster out and vote Democratic

Which is much worse in the eyes of the Neo-Cons.

Whether our era is the Last Hurrah or the Gotterdammerung of the Right Wing, the season is coming to an end.

--p!

[formercia]

30. Hitler did the same thing to his Generals

by deciding to go against their advice and take personal command. I wonder if Fearless Misleader has an Astrologist too.

[Warren Stupidity]

47. comparisons toHitler are misguided.

Hitler was far more competent than busholini. Hitler's Italian buddy, the pompous Mussolini is a far better analogy.

[Buns_of_Fire]

33. But I thought the Iraqi security forces were SUPPOSED to take on...

a greater role. Which would, if you believe boosh* (ha!), mean that our forces would be relieved of much of the crap they're putting up with now. Which would also mean that there wouldn't need to be as many there. Which would mean they could start withdrawing. So what's the problem with a general speculating on the numbers?

Unless, of course, Our Glorious Chickenshit Leader has no intention of bringing them home. After all, our next Crusade in Iran waits.

I'd love to see one of these Generals just walk up to the Coward-in-Chief and slap him silly.

[MaineDem]

34. Are any American media covering this?

I did a very quick search and couldn't find anything.

I'm so thankful for the foreign press.

[T_i_B]

36. And this from the Sunday Telegraph too

which makes it more plausible (according to DU logic anyway) that it would be covered by the US press as it is a RW paper, one of the better ones but it's not known as the "Torygraph" for nothing.

[rodeodance]

43. US pressed phrased it as 'mixed messages"---although did not mention

that this initial story came from a Supreme Gen in Irag (at least I do not recall the media mentioning it).

[izzie]

37. starting to sound more and more like those Vietnam days.

I am to old for this

[Vickers]

38. You tell 'em, George! WTF does a 4-star general know about military

matters?

:sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm:

[MSgt213]

40. No kidding. This clown is in theater of operations to boot. WTF.

[rodeodance]

44. nominate please. I think this is the beginning of 'civil war' between the

top Gens in Irag and the Pent/busco Inc. ---they will keep it quite but things will come out--drip drip. This is a significant story.

[Karenina]

46. Done and kicked!

:kick:

[Catchawave]

48. National Review?

There's a guy on Meet the Press right now defending Bush on this very subject. I have a feeling NR is Bush friendly?

Wasn't our biggest problem in Viet Nam, the prez didn't let the military do their job? What have we learned?

[rodeodance]

49. you must be on ET ?--I will have to wait.

[Catchawave]

53. Sorry, yes, I'm EST.....

I loved the Biden segment too. He was endearing by blaming himself for not understanding an Andrea Mitchell (Tim's on vacation?) question *after* she apologized for not being clear.

I keep forgetting the Sunday news shows are all over the time zones!

:kick:

[Barrett808]

56. Yes, NR's job is to defend Bush at all costs, and slime his detractors

They're very predictable.

Ann Coulter used to write for NR.

[indepat]

50. Weakening resolve to accomplish what? What is to be accomplished?

What is being accomplished?

[rodeodance]

54. bush's saving face? (for a while anyway)

[rodeodance]

52. that was a grand headline from the Brits!