McChrystal | Et Cetera: Publick and Privat Curiosities

An Angry Obama Relieves Runaway General McChrystal of Command

June 25, 2010 — Patrick Zimmerman

An Angry Obama Relieves Runaway General McChrystal of Command

An angry President Obama removed Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal from his position as Commander of American forces in Afghanistan on Wednesday, and named as his replacement the architect of the 2007 surge in Iraq, Gen. David H. Petraeus. President Obama said he had done so because an article in Rolling Stone featured contemptuous quotes from the general and his staff about senior administration officials, threatening to erode trust among administration and military officials, as well as to undermine civilian control of the military.

“War is bigger than any one man or woman, whether a private, a general or president,” President Obama said. “As difficult as it is to lose General McChrystal, I believe it is the right decision for our national security.” “I welcome debate among my team,” he said, “but I won’t tolerate division.”

President Obama Relieves General Stanley McChrystal of Command

Please Share This:

Posted in Barack Obama, Culture, Iraq, Iraq war, multimedia, News, Obama, photograph, photographs, Photography, Political, politics, Video, Wars, world news. Tags: Afghanistan, Afghanistan war, Barack Obama, Culture, Gen. David H. Petraeus, Gen. Petraeus, General McChrystal, General Stanley McChrystal, Iraq, Iraq war, McChrystal, multimedia, News, Obama, Petraeus, photograph, photographs, Photography, pictures, Political, politics, President Obama, Rolling Stone, The Runaway General:, Video, videos, war in Afghanistan, Wars, world news. Comments Off

The Runaway General: Gen. McChrystal Summoned to Washington Over Remarks

June 22, 2010 — Patrick Zimmerman

The Runaway General: Gen. McChrystal Summoned to Washington Over Remarks

President Obama’s top commander in Afghanistan was flown to Washington on Tuesday to find out whether he will be fired, after an article in Rolling Stone quoted him and his staff members speaking critically of top members of President Obama’s team.

With the war effort faltering, the comments by General Stanley McChrystal illustrated the disarray and spitefulness that exists among the Afghanistan team, as well as the tensions between the president and the military. In the magazine article, General McChrystal or his aides spoke derisively of Vice President Biden, Ambassador Karl Eikenberry, National Security Adviser General James L. Jones, Richard C. Holbrooke, the special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan, and even President Obama himself.

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs refused to say outright whether General McChrystal would lose his position. Gibbs questioned the general’s judgment, calling the comments an “enormous mistake,” adding that military parents need to know that “the structure where they’re sending their children is one that is capable and mature enough in prosecuting a war as important as Afghanistan.”