Chairman of Joint Chiefs To Be Replaced

The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Peter Pace, will not be re-nominated for the post. It was widely expected that he remain for another term.

Gates said he had originally intended to seek another two-year term for Pace, but concluded that would have resulted in a divisive Senate confirmation focusing on the Iraq war.

This is another sign that the Bush Administration is on the run. Gen. Pace is a good Marine officer and just celebrated his 40th anniversary in the Marine Corp. The military is doing an impossible job without the troops needed to police an entire nation.

The questions for the Idiot-In-Chief is why not stand behind Peter Pace. Why worry about a contentious confirmation process? Is he or is he not the best man for the job?

Switching course, Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced Friday he has recommended Adm. Mike Mullen, currently chief of naval operations, to replace Gen. Peter Pace as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Is there some reason why at this point in time when, as Bush says, we are a nation at war, would you pick a sailor to oversee the military engaged in a land war. Yes, yes, I know the Chairman's job is basically administrative but in this administration that has been much more about appearances than content, why a navy guy now?

I don't think this is major news but another indication of an administration in retreat, it's policies and goals in total disarray.

As chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for two years, and vice chairman for the previous four, Pace has been involved in all of the key decisions leading to the invasion of Iraq, and the planning for the post-Saddam era.

Considering what he was given to work with and the incompetent leadership of Bush and Rumsfeld, he did all he was capable of doing. The prosecution of the war was textbook and the post-war debacle can be directly attributed to Rumsfeld assigning only about a third of the troops actually needed for nation building.

Jim Martin