If he's dumb enough to say what he said to RS then he doesn't need to be in such a crucial leadership position. I wonder what he said off the record?
I think everyone is overlooking the real scandal. What kind of warrior drinks Bud Light Lime? He should have been removed from command for that alone.
This is my thinking. If the guy gets loaded on cheap beer and runs his mouth (and allows his aids to run their mouths) off to a magazine reporter how intelligent is this guy?
To be fair, some people just can't hold their tongues when they have been drinking. Add to this the fact that he had just left Afghanistan, where to my knowledge you aren't even allowed to have alcohol, and you have a situation where someone might slip and say things they shouldn't. Then, take what would have been a five hour plane trip and make it into a three day train ride and you have the makings of a resignation letter. I have known some very intelligent people who have made some truly stupid remarks when drunk.
"I don't always drink beer but, when I do, I prefer Bud Light Lime." Hmm...doesn't quite have the same ring to it.
I'm sorry, perhaps I should clarify: those who follow the right. The politicians may support the firing, but the grassroots folks beneath them are apparently vehemently against it. My basis for this? chron.com commenters. Terrible source, I know, but they're very right-wing and represent a good slice of the crowd.
Good point and one I've considered. I guess I just expect the guy running the war to have super human abilities when it comes to keeping his mouth shut or at the very least making sure he does not indulge in alcohol around reporters or at least keep the reporters at arms length.
IMO, his mistake was drinking with reporters in the vicinity. If he had been spouting off around fellow soldiers, the story never becomes a story.
When he resigns/is fired... does that mean he is just not commander in Afghanistan anymore or is he out of the armed forces?
Back to my theory that the guy should eat more than one meal a day. Didn't his dad ever tell him to eat something while drinking? I just saw again the ABC news clips of his famous spartan eating, execise and sleep regime. I'm wondering if he has anorxia or perhaps he binges and purges.
Well at least with McChystal gone we just have Petreus and Gates pusing for no exit form the Middle East till we have total victory accomplishing God only knows.
Firing McChrystal was a foregone conclusion. There is no way the President was going to keep a man who didn't have the sense to keep his mouth shut around a reporter. Any President would have fired him. Any one of them. General Petraeus was the perfect replacement. Instant credibility as a war commander who's dealt with the kind of conflict going on in Afghanistan, and politically astute, which is a requirement after General Foot in Mouth committed career suicide. For those who see some "plot" behind the scenes by the blabbermouths, don't be rediculous. These were career ending gaffs. Commanders simply don't say those things when a reporter is around and not expect to have to resign as a consequence of their words getting out into the public sphere. I'm sure General Can't Keep His Mouth Shut knew he was at the end of his career as soon as the story came out.
