By Update: Welcome Thomas Ricks readers. The quote you are looking for from Mattis is below. You may also enjoy the Libya discussion we are having here at the ROK Drop at this link. Thanks for visiting the site.
________________________________
I agree with Chuck Holton that General Mattis would be the best guy to replace General McChrystal if it comes to that:
General James Mattis
The question now is, who will replace him? Protocol dictates the next commander of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) should be a general from another country. If that happens, I believe defeat in Afghanistan is almost inevitable.
But if, by chance, someone has the foresight to appoint Marine Gen. James Mattis to the post, things would look a whole lot better. Mattis is the brains behind the Marine takeover of the southern part of the country – which some now call “Marinestan.”
Gen. Mattis is a no-bull commander who feels no compulsion to defeat the enemy without offending him. If he becomes the new commander, we just may see a quick turnaround on the ground in Afghanistan. [CBN News]
Thomas Ricks thinks General Petraeus should take a step down from CENTCOM and command the US war effort in Afghanistan. However, he thinks that Petraeus will likely ask that General Mattis be given the job. I tend to agree, but I don’t know if the Obama administration could accept General Mattis for the job considering they passed him over as the commandant of the Marine Corps and he was set to retire. Here is what the AP is reporting as the reason why General Mattis was passed over:
In choosing him, the Pentagon passed over Gen. James Mattis — an expert in counterinsurgency warfare but also expected to pose a stiffer challenge to proposed budget changes.
“This guy is a very blunt, clear thinker,” Loren Thompson, a defense analyst who heads the Lexington Institute, said of Mattis. “He thinks big ideas and doesn’t suffer fools.”
Thompson said he thinks the Pentagon’s decision to pick Amos to lead the Marines was a signal that it doesn’t want push-back if some of the service’s most cherished programs, like the Marine’s Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle, are scaled back. [Associated Press]
Check out This Ain’t Hell for more on Mattis, but I love this quote from him:
Abizaid met Mattis in his command post outside the city, where he had been leading the battle from the front for weeks. Over three dozen soldiers, sailors, and Marines had died in the assault. Mattis’s own command element had been attacked multiple times by this point and had suffered casualities. His uniform was soiled and dirty from the weeks of constant combat. When Abizaid (a four-star general in charge of CENTCOM) told Mattis (a two-star divisional commander) to stop the assault Mattis looked Abizaid in the eye and growled IF YOU ARE GOING TO TAKE VIENNA TAKE F***ING VIENNA. Abizaid just nodded and Mattis stormed out of the room. [This Ain't Hell]
If I was the Taliban I think that General Mattis would be the last guy I would want to see take over for. Anyway it will be interesting to see if the Obama administration can accept the guy most qualified for the job in Afghanistan if General McChrystal is in fact fired.
2:34 pm on June 22nd, 2010 1
Quote:"Mattis looked Abizaid in the eye and growled IF YOU ARE GOING TO TAKE VIENNA TAKE F***ING VIENNA."
F*CK YEAH! I vote this guy for president!
2:44 pm on June 22nd, 2010 2
When I am out and about, I hear people misusing the term "mission essential," as in "I am mission essential!"
In a correctly functioning organization, no individual should be mission essential. There are mission essential positions, but the people filling them should be replaceable. That includes general officer positions.
2:51 pm on June 22nd, 2010 3
Why is it that Patraeus would not accept the job if General McCrystal is fired?
3:03 pm on June 22nd, 2010 4
Patraeus is McCrystal's immediate boss.
3:15 pm on June 22nd, 2010 5
#2 Kind of nit-picky but in my experience, "mission essential" describes the position, not the individual. It usually comes down to people/positions who get NEO'd out of theater during a contingency vs. your "go to war" personnel.
3:55 pm on June 22nd, 2010 6
Success or failure in Afghanistan is not wholly depending on the general we have in place. Let's not forget the Karzi Factor.t.
Karzi is a kind of weaselly guy playing all sized over there.
The pending Kandahar operation had been delayed, and all other operations are touchy because the commander has to convince the tribal leaders the operation will drive out the Taliban without killing too many civilian.
Karzi hedges on signing off on anything that uses more the small arms fire. At the same time he is having back door talks with the Taliban, so who knows when he might call a cease fire in the middle of a battle because some tribal warlord make him a sketchy promise.
Any new commander going in there has to be prepared for and able to deal with all of that. It's not as straight forward as taking Vienna.
4:23 pm on June 22nd, 2010 7
"The question now is, who will replace him? Protocol dictates the next commander of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) should be a general from another country. If that happens, I believe defeat in Afghanistan is almost inevitable."
4:26 pm on June 22nd, 2010 8
I certainly hope Mr. Obama gives GEN McChrystal ample time to attend ACAP.
I thinks it's a safe bet he will not be sitting on the board of Pizza Hut, Burger King or Baskin-Robbins. Never burn a bridge, Sir.
10:15 pm on June 22nd, 2010 9
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by GIKorea, Laura Andlauer. Laura Andlauer said: RT @GIKorea: New blog post: If General McChrystal Is Fired Who Should Replace Him? http://bit.ly/cqDICU [...]
2:08 am on June 23rd, 2010 10
I think this General McChrystal could be the father of that Screwball B. Carr over there at the Wacko Marmot's Hole.
3:35 am on March 4th, 2011 11
[...] As General Mattis once said, if you’re going to take Vienna, take f—ing Vienna. [...]
5:59 am on September 29th, 2011 12
We have have the iPhone 4 ,3Gs? 16GB and 32GB, in stock for sale at affordable prices.
iPhone 3G 8GB Cost……..US$250
iPhone 3G 16GB Cost…….US$300
iPhone 3Gs 16GB Cost……US$350
iPhone 3Gs 32GB Cost……US$400
iPhone 4G 16GB Cost…….US$500
iPhone 4G 32GB Cost…….US$600
Apple iPad 2 Wi-Fi + 3G 64 GB – Apple iOS 4 1 GHz – Black Cost US$450
Apple iPad 2 64GB Wi-Fi + 3G for Verizon Black Cost US$550
Apple iPad 2 Wi-Fi 64 GB – Apple iOS 4 1 GHz – White Cost US$600
Apple iPad 2 Wi-Fi + 3G 32 GB – Apple iOS 4 1 GHz – White Cost US$650
Apple iPad 2 with Wi-Fi – 64GB – Black MC916LLA/ Cost US$1,000
Contact us for the Full details.and for other mobile phones in stock.
1. Complete accessories(Well packed and sealed in original company box)
2. Unlocked / sim free.
3. Brand new (original manufacturer) box – no copies
4. All phones have English language as default
5. All material (software, manual) – car chargers – home chargers – usb data
cables -holsters/belt clips – wireless headsets(blue-tooth) -leather and
non-leather carrying cases – batteries.
SPECIFICATION:
(ARAB/EUROPEANS/ASIA/US SPECIFICATIONS) GENERAL NETWORK GSM 900/GSM 1800/GSM 1900 PLATFORM – TRI BAND (GSM900 + 1800 + 1900 MHZ.ANY OF THE PHONES THAT IS NOT IN GOOD CONDITION SHOULD BE RETURN IMMEDIATELY TO US AND WE WILL BEAR THE RETURN CHARGES AND REPLACEMENTS FOR THE PHONES.
Contact us Via: lms414@gmail.com
6:36 am on September 29th, 2011 13
WTF? How did the above post get in there?