(General James Mattis, a tough Marine dismissed from his CENTCOM Command for his views on Iran. Photo AFP).
“From his first months in office, President Obama secretly ordered increasingly sophisticated attacks on the computer systems that run Iran’s main nuclear enrichment facilities, significantly expanding America’s first sustained use of cyberweapons, according to participants in the program. Mr. Obama decided to accelerate the attacks — begun in the Bush administration and code-named Olympic Games — even after an element of the program accidentally became public in the summer of 2010 because of a programming error that allowed it to escape Iran’s Natanz plant and sent it around the world on the Internet. Computer security experts who began studying the worm, which had been developed by the United States and Israel gave it a name: Stuxnet.”
– David Sanger, writing in the New York Times, June 2012
It is a curious thing, this leaking thing. I have avoided talking about the lamented and misguided Mr. Snowden, though I did vent a bit about young PFC Bradley Manning when he made his breathtaking disclosure of a half a million classified cables from the State Department and other Government agencies. I mean, I get the whole leaker-as-hero thing, but this little cretin had signed on oath to protect the material to which he had access.
Snowden is something else altogether. Latest reports from the rock-star espionage practicioner is that he took the job at Booz-Allen-Hamilton specifically to scoop up particularly juicey items about a program which had been vetted, briefed to Congress, and approved by a Federal Judge. In other words, he blew the whistle on a legal program.
But no matter. I am pleased not to be living in a transit lounge in an airport I don’t particularly like.
But there is another leaking case going on, and this one is really surprising. The investigation is targeted on the former number two officer on The Joint Staff, General “Hoss” Cartwright.
(General James “Hoss” Carwright. Official DoD photo).
Cartwright, who served as the Vice Chairman between 2007-2011, was reportedly the savant who championed the Stuxnet attack on the Iranian nuclear enrichment centrifuges.
It was way cool. I remember when the existence of the bug was first disclosed by independent security experts when it escaped into the wild. It was exotic. It was targeted against Seimens electronic equipment. Outside the real target, the bug was benign. Inside, it did all sort of really neat tricks, and mutated to change its signature.
At the time, I had a suspicion- a hope, better said- that we were taking action against the development of the Shia Bomb. And then the big leak came with the Sanger article. It depicted a heroic Administration on the cutting edge of cyber-warfare, proactively protecting America under the firm but measured guidance of the President.
(National Security Advisor Tom Donilon. Photo White House).
I smelled Tom Donilon all over it. You know Tom, I hope. He is a former Public Affairs Offier who stumbled into being the National Security Advisor to Mr. Obama. His credentials for the post are better suited to being a press secretary- he is much more in the mold of Baghdad Bob Jay Carney than a Zbigneew Brzezinski or a Brent Scowcroft. He is more of a showman, though he had the confidence of Valerie Jarrett and the President. Those are two things that are very important in the Obama White House, and several military officers, of whom Hoss is the only the latest, to come to unpleasant situations with it.
In fact, you could actually call it something of a war against the Generals. In my experience, I have never seen so many GO-FOs (general and flag officers) “lose the confidence” of their civilian masters. Jimmy Carter at least understood them, having been a naval officer himself. President Reagan certainly did as he re-built the DoD after Mr. Carter’s semi-benign neglect. Mr. Bush was appreciative of their service, and respected their judgment. Mr. Clinton realized that their anger was toxic, and after an early defeat on the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell compromise, essentially left the Pentagon alone. The second Mr. Bush may have used them too willingly, but at least the generals knew where they stood with him.
Mr. Obama is a different sort of customer. It is pretty interesting. Of course he never served, but he did preside over two wars, and along the way launched more espionage investigations than all the other Presidents put together. The number of them is extraordinary, surpassed only by the somewhat surprising aspect that the only leaks pursued seemed to be ones that did not depict the Administration in a positive light.
Poor Hoss is the latest on that score. I will have to let this one play out to see what is what, but my sense of this is that if Hoss talked, it was because he was told to do so- either by the President, or more likely by that former PR flack Tom Donilon. You are going to have to go a long way to prove to me that General Cartwright is not being thrown under the bus to protect the National Security Advisor, and ultimately the Oval Office.
Of course there has been General Officeer misconduct. It is just sort of surprising how much durty laundry- or at least alleged dirty laundry has come out. Why do I say that? Let’s see:
Maj. Gen. Ralph Baker, commander of the Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, Gen. Carter Ham, commanding general of all U.S. military operations across Africa, Gen. William “Kip” Ward, the first four-star general to command U.S. military operations in Africa, Rear Admiral Charles Gaouette. All were involved in the Benghazi humiliation.
The last four U.S. generals to run the Afghan war: Gen. David McKiernan, Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, General John Allen. Gen. David Petraeus managed to survive his combat command and retire, but was forced to resign after the FBI started to rummage around in his personal emails and an intimate relationship with his biographer came to light.
I don’t know if Gen. Joseph Dunford feels the hairs going up on the back of his neck or not. He is the 15th ISAF commander since 2002, a veritable revolving door of generals.
President Barack Obama also fired General James Mattis, the head of Central Command, without even calling the general to let him know he was being replaced. National Security Advisor Tom Donilon was unhappy with the crusty Marine’s insistence on being heard about the mischief that Iran was exporting to places like Syria. I know that Ms. Jarrett takes a particular interest in things Iranian, along with Mr. Donilon.
I am not accusing anyone of anything in particular- though I would gently note that it seems like a really bad career move to oppose anyone close to the Oval Office. They play with their elbows up in there, which is something that the generals don’t seem to understand very well. It is funny, really, this role reversal of bloodthirsty politicians going after the big bad warriors.
It brings to mind one of General Mattis’ best quotes. “I come in peace. I didn’t bring artillery. But I’m pleading with you, with tears in my eyes: If you fuck with me, I’ll kill you all.”
I believe the General, and agree with him. He just didn’t understand who he was up against. Culturally, he never had a chance. He is just not from Chicago.
Copyright 2013 Vic Socotra
www.vicsocotra.com