Mattis Faces CENTCOM Confirmation

Gen. James Mattis, the nominee to replace former Central Command head General David Petraeus, faced an amciable Senate panel Tuesday in the first step of what will likely be a smooth confirmation process.

Mattis, who will be tasked with overseeing the American presence in Afghanistan and Iraq, emphasized that although there will be a change in leadership, U.S. military policy, including the plan to begin the early transfer of additional power to the Afghan government in 2011, will continue uninterrupted.

Touching briefly on the recent Wikileaks scandal, in which thousands of classified documents were posted online, Mattis described the leak as “an appallingly irresponsible act,” but said that the release would have little effect on the war effort.

Little attention was paid to Mattis’s loose-lipped history, including comments made by the four-star General in 2005, in which Mattis, nicknamed ‘Mad Dog’ in some circles, told an audience during a speaking engagement in San Diego, that it was “fun to shoot some people” in Afghanistan.

“You got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn’t wear a veil. You know, guys like that ain’t got no manhood left anyway,” Mattis said in 2005. “It’s a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them. Actually, it’s a lot of fun to fight. You know, it’s a hell of a hoot. It’s fun to shoot some people. I’ll be right upfront with you, I like brawling.”

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, noted that he admired Mattis’s propensity for “straight talk.”

Mattis’s eventual predecessor General Petraeus is currently serving as the commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan following General Stanley McChrystal’s exit amid a controversial Rolling Stone article. Mattis is currently serving as the commander of U.S. Joint Forces. Before being tapped as Cent-Com head, Mattis was reportedly intending to retire.

Mattis Tapped As CENTCOM Head

Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced Thursday that he has selected General James Mattis to replace General David Petraeus as the head of U.S. Central Command, and characterized Mattis as one of the military’s most independent and iconoclastic leaders.

However, these attributes have gotten Mattis in trouble in the past. In 2005, Mattis remarked on-camera that it was “fun to shoot some people” in Afghanistan.

“You got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn’t wear a veil. You know, guys like that ain’t got no manhood left anyway,” Mattis said during a panel discussion in California. “It’s a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them. Actually, it’s a lot of fun to fight. You know, it’s a hell of a hoot. It’s fun to shoot some people. I’ll be right upfront with you, I like brawling.”

When reminded of Mattis’s remarks by a reporter, Gates responded that that the General was properly disciplined at the time and has corrected his behavior since the incident.

“That was five years ago,” said Gates. “I think the subsequent five years have demonstrated that the lesson was learned.”

Mattis, a Marine, is the current head of U.S. Joint Forces Command. He was initially intending to retire this year.

General Petraeus was unanimously confirmed by the Senate to command U.S. forces in Afghanistan last Wednesday. He replaced now-retired General Stanley McChrystal, who was relieved of his command after disparaging comments from he and his staff made it into an issue of Rolling Stone magazine.

Senate Armed Services Chairman Carl Levin’s (D-Mich.) office told Talk Radio News that the dates for Mattis’s confirmation hearings will not be announced until at least next week.

Petraeus Open To Ending "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

By Chingyu Wang
Talk Radio News Service

U.S. Gen. David Petraeus, Commander of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), said on Tuesday that he is open to a review of the military's controversial "don't ask, don't tell" policy.

“I believe the time has come to consider a change to DADT,” he said.

Regarding Iran, he said CENTCOM is networking with other countries that are concerned about Iran’s nuclear project and who hope to prevent it from growing.

“The Iranian regime continues its nuclear program. Indeed, Iran is assessed by many analysts to be engaged in pursuing nuclear weapon capability,” said Petraeus. “[Iran] is likely to spur a regional arms race.”

To prevent a nuclear war, Petraeus said CENTCOM has been working on building regional security architecture in that region to establish “security relationships and partnerships" between nations that share concern over Iran.

On Afghanistan, Petraeus said that in roughly 18 months from now, the total number of American troops in Afghanistan will top 139,000.

Meanwhile, American forces in Iraq are expected to be reduced from 97,000 to 50,000 by the end of August 2010, he said.

Bridging The Cultural Divide To Fight Terrorists

By Michael Ruhl, University of New Mexico – Talk Radio News Service

General David Petraeus
Photo By Michael Ruhl

According to General David Petraeus, an educated American soldier that can bridge the cultural divide with the Muslim world can more effectively fight the War on Terror. This soldier would understand the social context they are operating within, and would understand the broad implications and consequences of military action.

General Petraeus, Commander of U.S. Central Command, discussed U.S. military strategy in the Middle East and South Asia while testifying today before Congress.

“While additional military forces clearly are necessary (in Afghanistan), they will not by themselves be sufficient to achieve our objective,” said the General. America’s objective, he said, is to make sure extremists do not have a haven from which to plan and execute another attack on the level of the 9-11 attacks.

A smarter military can better understand the necessary social infrastructure to facilitate lasting peace within a region. This combined with intelligent military action, international cooperation, the building of infrastructure and a swath of other initiatives will help America secure the region, according to Petraeus. “You cannot kill or capture your way out of an industrial strength insurgency,” the General said.

"We also need to expand just the basic knowledge of Afghanistan among our forces," Petraeus said. He continued that greater knowledge will lead to a "nuanced and granular understanding" that will enable the Army to undertake the kind of sophisticated reconciliation processes in Afghanistan that were important in Iraq.

Congressman Norm Dicks (D-Wash.) agreed that soldiers should be educated, and brought attention to the U.S. Army’s Homestead Program. Dicks said this program involves an Officer taking a year off from active service to live in a country, learn the language, and understand the culture. Retired Army General John Abizaid did a program similar to this. Abizaid was former Commander of U.S. Central Command.

The U.S. Army could not be reached for comment on the current funding of the program, but Dicks expressed concern on the small number of individuals enrolled in it.

The necessary approach to success involves placing security in the hands of the Afghans, Petraeus said, which means helping them collectively realize that the biggest security threat in the region comes from dissident extremist elements within the country, most notably Al-Qaeda. He emphasized that America’s presence in Afghanistan is not permanent, and that Afghanistan’s government and economy must be encouraged by its citizens.