The Armed Forces’ Chiefs of Staff recently testified to the senate about the current mistrust between them and President Obama. They revealed dangers related to national security and budget caps. Senator Lindsey Graham asked each chief if they had relayed the information to president Obama. He wanted to know about the readiness of the country for this type of pending crisis. What they responded with was astonishing.
Without hesitation they all answered and agreed there was a problem between Obama and each of them. They spoke about past situations with the president in which he was defensive with them. They also stated at times, the president spoke in very insulting ways to them. Apparently Obama also had issues with past defense secretaries as well as. Not to mention NATO Commanders. The president is very closed off when dealing with his generals and admirals who are in charge of his wars.
Do the Chiefs of Staff Get Along With Obama?
“Have you told the president what you’re telling us about the state of the military under sequestration?” Asked the South Carolina Republican Lindsey Graham. “Have you had a conversation with the commander in chief, telling him what you just told us?”
He was first answered by General Mark Milley. Milley gave the first answer and said, “I have not personally had a consversation.”
As Graham continued down the line, Admiral John Richardson answered next. He replied, “No.”
Trump recently added his own opinion on Obama’s relationship with his generals. On a NBC forum, Trump said, “Obama’s generals have been reduced to rubble by Mr. Obama.” Many feel this is an over the top statement about the president. But they still agree there is a definite problem.
Robert Gates was a defense secretary for Mr. Obama. He simply wrote about the relationship between him and Obama in his memoirs. In the memoirs, Gates wrote that Mr. Obama has a deep distrust for his senior military advisers and leaders. Gates also added, Obama feels his military leaders are against him. Also, he recollected some thoughts about a past scenario with the president. During one encounter Obama threw a very disrespectful.
What Did Obama Say to His Military Advisers?
“That’s an order,” he shouted, to one of his senior military leaders. Apparently the order was un-needed and carried a very demeaning tone.
“The controlling nature of the Obama White House and the staff took micromanagement and operational meddling to a new level.” Gates said in his memoir, “Duty.” “I think Obama considered time spent with generals and admirals an obligation.”
Leon E. Panetta, Gate’s successor also wrote in his memoir about Obama. He wrote that generals were swayed from making their points by Obama. Also, one such incident included a disagreement about troops in Afghanistan. The general was marked as a conspirator by the Obama staff.
What Does The White House Think of Obama’s Military Advisers?
“The White House saw this as a coordinated effort to limit the president’s decision space. While Gates saw it as evidence that the Pentagon brass was unable to stay on message,” Leon E. Panetta wrote. “For my part, it seemed that the leading generals saw the problem the same way and weren’t good about keeping quiet. But not that they were organizing a campaign against their president.”
One adviser to Obama was fired because his push to link Radical Islam to the Terrorists. The White House had him fired because Obama refuses to link the two groups together. Obviously, there’s severe disconnect between Obama and his military leaders. Apparently his leaders are frustrated because they simply don’t know what to do about the situation. Hopefully Trump will win in November and these types of problems will naturally begin to dissolve.
