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Let the parlor game begin. As Americans wake up to the scathing resignation letter from Secretary Jim Mattis, Washington chatter is already moving on to the inevitable question of “who is next”? Who will the President tap to take up residence in the E-Ring and run the world’s largest employer and most effective fighting force? Who will have the responsibility for overseeing the withdrawal from Syria, Afghanistan, and who knows where else? Who will have the privilege of defending the White House’s military policies in front of a congress where both Democrats and fellow Republicans feel more emboldened to question the Commander in Chief. Not to be flippant, but who cares? Or, more precisely, does it matter? Someone will be appointed, and someone will be confirmed, but the President has now proven that he cares more about his twitchy Twitter trigger finger than what experience, insight, and advice a candidate might bring to the Pentagon. So, it may matter less “who is next” than “who comes after that.” The Trump presidency will leave our armed forces bruised, and its first post-Trump leader will have to make the repair job their number one priority. They will need to start by rebuilding trust. You can’t run the world’s leading military when no one believes what you are saying to them, even if it’s just because no one believes your boss.
They will need to rebuild relationships. Allies will need to be brought back into the fold. The bridge to congress that every effective SecDef has nurtured and leaned on will need its own infrastructure project. The unique relationship with the press that lives inside the Building will need to be rebooted. And the American people will need to know more, not less, about what its military is up to so they can feel confidence in its actions. They will need to rebuild processes. When you are talking about putting America’s sons and daughters into mortal danger you need to have systems and processes in place that ensure the facts you are depending on are correct, that the decisions you are making are sound, and that all the options have been considered. They will need to rebuild morale. Sudden changes in strategy, ignoring senior military officers, unnecessary holiday season deployments to the border—all of these actions erode morale. The decisions that are made in the Situation Room ripple down to the most junior personnel in the military, and the instability that Trump creates threatens the confidence of everyone in uniform. That is a problem, and it will need to be addressed. America leads because it is not only good for the world, but it is good for America. Decades of work building systems and relationships that allow us to sit in that leadership position are being thrown out the window, weakening our position not just militarily, but diplomatically and economically. When the world can’t trust what America says, when America isn’t seen as a leader by our allies or our advisories, then we are worse off. The next SecDef will arguably be a caretaker. The SecDef after that will have a yeoman’s job ahead of them, a rebuilding effort with global consequences.
This article is nonsense.
1. Our armed forces are not "bruised". They are still the best military in the world. If given the order, they'll step up and do their job. In fact, unlike what has happened when every Democratic President has left office, the next President won't have to start out by begging Congress for the money to get our military up to fighting speed.
2. It's not the military's...nor the SecDef's...job to bring allies back into "the fold" (whatever that is). That is the job of the SecState.
3. The press? LOL!! This is a non-issue. If the next President is a Democrat, the press will be all nicey-nice. If the next President is a Republican, we'll see the same from the press that we see now.
These are just a few of the nonsense points this article makes. The whole screed is an exercise in anti-Trump spin bolstered by hyperbole.
https://www.defenseone.com/voices/brent-colburn/14046/?oref=d-article-authorBrent Colburn is the former Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs and Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security for Public Affairs. He also served as the National Communications Director for the 2012 Obama campaign. Colburn currently works at Princeton University as the Vice President for Communications and Public Affairs.
https://iop.harvard.edu/fellows/brent-colburnBrent Colburn, a veteran of both Democratic political campaigns and the Obama administration.
Just look at the author's "credentials":
https://www.defenseone.com/voices/brent-colburn/14046/?oref=d-article-author
So he is a Democratic public relations guy.
Just look at the author's "credentials"
Typical hardcore Trumper.
If the message hits too close to home, attack the messenger.
This article is nonsense.
1. Our armed forces are not "bruised". They are still the best military in the world. If given the order, they'll step up and do their job. In fact, unlike what has happened when every Democratic President has left office, the next President won't have to start out by begging Congress for the money to get our military up to fighting speed.
2. It's not the military's...nor the SecDef's...job to bring allies back into "the fold" (whatever that is). That is the job of the SecState.
3. The press? LOL!! This is a non-issue. If the next President is a Democrat, the press will be all nicey-nice. If the next President is a Republican, we'll see the same from the press that we see now.
These are just a few of the nonsense points this article makes. The whole screed is an exercise in anti-Trump spin bolstered by hyperbole.
You would be surprised at how much diplomacy goes on between the higher levels of nations’ militaries.
Yeah? Tell me about it.
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