Either the President is the Commander-In-Chief, or he is not

hat tip-SouthernGirl2

From Huffington Post:

WASHINGTON — The top U.S. commander in Afghanistan was fighting for his job Tuesday after being summoned to Washington to explain a magazine profile that included derogatory comments about President Barack Obama and his colleagues.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Gen. Stanley McChrystal's comments were "distractions" to the war in Afghanistan.

McChrystal, who publicly apologized Tuesday for using "poor judgment" in an interview in Rolling Stone magazine, has been ordered to appear at the White House Wednesday, according to officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.

He'll be expected to explain his comments in the magazine's profile, titled "The Runaway General," to the president and top Pentagon officials, officials said.

A top military official in Afghanistan told The Associated Press that McChrystal hasn't been told whether he will be allowed to keep his job. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to describe internal discussions between Washington and the general's office in Kabul.

McChrystal spent Tuesday calling several of those mentioned in the article to apologize, officials said, including Gates and Richard Holbrooke, U.S. special envoy to Pakistan.

Gates issued a statement saying McChrystal made "a significant mistake" and used poor judgment in his remarks to a magazine reporter.

He can apologize until Jesus returns.

McChrystal needs to go.



I can't see how this is anything BUT insubordination.

There are few things that are as explicit in the Constitution of the United States as 'THE PRESIDENT IS THE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF'.

Doesn't say that the President is the Commander-In-Chief when you agree with him.

NO.

Despised Bush for 8 years, but he was the Commander-in-Chief.

IF you have a problem with that as a member of the military, then you need to either: 1)shut up and follow orders or 2) resign. As a member of the Armed Forces, these are your options.

McChrystal has openly disrespected and defied the President of the United States.

And, if Jonathan Alter's book is to be believed- it's not the first time.

Since he has issues with this President, he can take his government pension and go do whatever he does for fun.

Let's be clear: the President gave McChrystal WHAT HE WANTED IN AFGHANISTAN. He didn't go halfsies with him - he gave the man what he wanted. And now, that it's pretty clear that HIS idea really didn't work, he's trying to punk out.

He also needs to go for this reason:

From James Fallows of the Atlantic:

It's about civilian control of the military, respect for the chain of command, and the concepts of disrespect and insubordination. Every officer and enlisted person in every military branch is well schooled in what those concepts mean.

If the facts are as they appear -- McChrystal and his associates freely mocking their commander in chief and his possible successor (ie, Biden) and the relevant State Department officials (Holbrooke and Eikenberry) -- with no contention that the quotes were invented or misconstrued, then Obama owes it to past and future presidents to draw the line and say: this is not tolerable. You must go.

Another reason why he should go:
hat tip-lamh32

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Tillman mother sought to warn Obama of McChrystal

The mother of the slain football player and Army Ranger Pat Tillman sought to warn President Obama against making General Stanley McChrystal his commander in Afghanistan.

Mary Tillman said in an unpublished interview this year that she wrote to Obama and called Senators and members of Congress seeking to block McChrystal's appointment when she learned that he was under consideration for the post.

She called the lack of deliberation leading to his appointment "disgusting" in the interview, given before today's Rolling Stone article spurred intense tension between the general and the White House. An audio recording of the interview was provided to POLITICO by the interviewer, who asked to remain anonymous.

McChrystal has been accused of involvement in covering up of the fact that Tillman had been shot by his own comrades, having approved a citation for a posthumous medal that attributed his death to "enemy fire," though the general also penned a memo warning the White House against describing the circumstance of Tillman's death for fear of future embarrassment.