Gen. McChrystal Gets His Walking Papers

by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700

Copyright June 22, 2010
All Rights Reserved.                                

            Handing U.S. Afghan Commander Gen. Stanley McChrystal his walking papers, President Barack Obama wasted no time reminding the four-star general who’s commander-in-chief.  Barack summoned McChrystal to the Oval Office to explain his critical remarks in “Rolling Stone Magazine,” criticizing White House officials for their delayed response last year to his request for more troops.  McChrystal had little to complain about when Obama added 30,000 more troops Dec. 1, 2009, on top of the 21,000 he added earlier on Feb. 1, less than two weeks after his inauguration.  McChrystal’s comments to Rolling Stone were innocuous enough, blaming Iraq Amb. Karl Eikenberry for raising doubts about Afghan President Hamid Karzai.  It was Karzai, after all, that blamed the U.S. Apri 2 for election fraud, where the U.S.-backed Afghan president was accused of stealing the election.

            Hard-charging McChrystal pushed hard last fall for Obama to betray a campaign promise to begin an orderly withdrawal of U.S. and NATO forces.  McChyrstal begged for more troops to set down a stubborn Taliban insurgency undermining the U.S. mission.  Former President George W. Bush launched Operation Enduring Freedom Oct 7, 2001, less than one month after Osama bin Laden flew jetliners into the World Trade Center and Pentagon.  Because the one-eyed Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar refused to turn over Osama bin Laden, Bush toppled the extremist Islamic government.  Three weeks later, the Taliban fled Kabul, driven underground to fight a guerrilla war.  Bush’s Operation Enduring Freedom was a huge success until they let Osama bin Laden escape on dirt bikes via the Khyber Pass to ungoverned mountainous tribal lands of Afghanistan and Pakistan.

            Today’s mission in Afghanistan has been obscured beyond recognition from the early days of Operation Enduring Freedom.  No longer can the White House or Pentagon claim with a straight face that the U.S. still hunts for the perpetrators of Sept. 11.  Today’s mission is complicated by Karzai’s close ties to the Taliban, despite promises to go after the perpetrators of Sept. 11.  Booting out McChrystal and handing the baton to Cencom Commander and former Iraq Commander David Petraeus also doesn’t change the mission.  “This is a change in personnel but it is not a change in policy,” Barack told White House reporters announcing McChrystal’s ouster.  Despite criticizing the White House, McChrystal expressed his support of the White House policy.  “I strongly support the president’s strategy in Afghanistan,” said McChrystal, backpedaling after his forceful condemnation.

            Obama was right accepting McChrystal’s resignation, not because he’s a bad general but precisely because he has such poor judgment.  While there’s nothing wrong with giving interviews to magazines, there’s something very wrong with venting his spleen in public.  With the mission in Afghanistan—with or without McChrystal—in doubt, the White House can ill-afford to have a loose cannon at the helm.  Hitting a high diplomatic note, Obama thanked McChrystal for his service, expressing “considerable regret” over his departure.  “I welcome debate among my team, but I won’t tolerate division,” said Barack, accepting the general’s resignation.  Asking Petraeus to leave Centcom and putting the job back into his lap indicates the just how far Afghanistan has deteriorated.  When Barack campaigned for president, he gave no indication he would escalate the war.

            Replacing Petraeus for McChrystal doesn’t change the murky mission now confronting U.S. and NATO forces.  Wiping out the Taliban won’t happen when Karzai supports both the Taliban and the Afghan opium trade.  His brother’s ties to the opium trade are well-documented.  Given Karzai’s close ties to the Taliban and his alleged fraud in last years presidential elections, it’s becoming more difficult to justify the loss of U.S. blood and treasure.  U.S. casualty rates have steadily risen to the highest levels of the nearly nine-year war, losing 46 U.S. soldiers this month.  Because the U.S. no longer goes after the perpetrators of Sept. 11 in Afghanistan, there’s less national security significance to the mission.  Preserving the corrupt Karzai government, or even more absurd, preventing a Taliban takeover, should give Obama even more second thoughts about current mission.

            Karazi’s close family ties to the Taliban make him a dangerous partner to the current U.S. mission.  U.S. forces can’t pay off enough warlords or opium farmers to change Karzai’s close ties to the presumed enemy, fighting the U.S. and NATO to a virtual standoff.  Taliban forces have already folded into the civilian population and fight a dirty guerrilla war, looking more-and-more like Vietnam.  While there are some differences, including a less deadly organized fighting force than the Viet Cong, there are too many similarities.  No U.S. puppet regime can change a popular Islamic movement nor should that be the U.S. mission.  Whatever minor role the Taliban once played protecting Osama bin Laden, they’re no longer a threat to U.S. national security.  Getting rid of McChrystal doesn’t change a lost mission.  Obama should go back to the drawing board and plan his exit strategy.

John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He's editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.