What DO We Need in a Secretary of Defense? Posted by Heather Hurlburt

Over the weekend, friends-of-the-blog Brian Katulis and Nancy Soderberg had a piece in the Washington Post arguing that Defense Secretary Gates should stay on in either an Obama or McCain Administration, because Gates "thinks creatively," understands that "we cannot kill or capture our way to victory," and because

  the Pentagon chief likes to quote Gen. George Marshall's description of Dwight D. Eisenhower as the "almost perfect model of a modern commander: part soldier, part diplomat, part administrator." Gates understands that all three aspects are crucial, that for all our core national security problems -- finishing the jobs in Iraq and Afghanistan, stabilizing Pakistan, defeating al-Qaeda, confronting a resurgent Russia and advancing the Middle East peace process -- the secret to success will be improving the basic security of people in the area and giving them more comfortable, hopeful lives.

The speculating thing is fun -- and Nukes and Spooks responds with a long list of incidences of Gates saying he's a short-timer, to which I respond, "People will say anything, and often do."  Youssef also writes that "Gates' tenure has spurred a renewed debate about what the nation needs from its secretary of defense, particularly as it engages two counterinsurgencies."  I wish she were right about that -- maybe I'm just not looking in the right places -- but if you re-cast Nancy and Brian's op-ed as a help-wanted ad it would be a good start:

Wanted:  Senior management official to oversee entity, world's largest in its field, currently tied down in ill-advised business ventures.  Experience in military, diplomacy, administration a must.  Team player, but creativity a plus; ability to gain confidence of 535-member oversight board a necessity.  No lobbyists, neocons or card-carrying liberals need apply.   

Comments

[Dan Kervick]

No. No. No. A thousand times no! We finished up the Clinton administration with a Republican secretary of defense. Why in hell do we need another one? William Cohen took office in January, 1997. If Gates serves through Obama's first term until January, 2013, that would make 16 consecutive years of Republican rule at DoD. Whence comes this reward? Republicans have not exactly proven themselves to be awesome at handling our national defense, have they?

If Obama is elected, that will be because a majority of Americans want change. The Bush administration and its odious and stupid war have been decisively rejected by the public. I am absolutely appalled that any prominent Democratic foreign policy figures would think now is the time to be pushing for continuity with the Bush administration! How out of touch can they be?

I understand that the foreign policy priesthood judges its members by their affectations of Olympian distance from the filthy slums of partisan politics. But surely even members of the priesthood have some sense of political dynamics and exigencies. Gates may be a centrist, who looks good by comparison with the troglodytes he replaced. But I'm certain there are many outstanding Democrats who can do the job as well as he. There is absolutely no excuse for Democrats not to go to their own bench for the top positions in the next administration.

What is it about centrist Dems with their unrequited Republican-love. Stop! Just stop!

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