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Gates To Military: Shut Up About The War
Defense Secretary Robert Gates appealed Monday for calm amid intense administration debate over the flagging war in Afghanistan, asking for time and privacy for the president to come to a decision - an apparent message to the commanding U.S. general there who has pressed publicly for more American troops.Gates' remarks appeared to stand as an implicit rebuke of the man he helped install as the top commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, for his lobbying as President Barack Obama faced a critical week of decision over whether to escalate the Afghan war. In two appearances Monday, Gates made the point that Obama needs elbow room to make strategy decisions about the war, as the internal White House debate went increasingly public. "It is important that we take our time to do all we can to get this right," Gates said at an Army conference. "In this process, it is imperative that all of us taking part in these deliberations, civilians and military alike, provide our best advice to the president - candidly but privately." Later, speaking alongside Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, he praised McChrystal and said no matter what Obama decides, the general will execute it faithfully. Theirs is not to make reply/ Theirs is not to reason why/ Theirs is but to do and die. Posted by: Anonymoose 2009-10-06 |
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