Defense Secretary Robert Gates has called CENTCOM
commander Adm. William Fallon “one of the best strategic
thinkers in uniform today.” Fallon opposed the “surge”
in Iraq and has consistently battled the Bush administration
to avoid a confrontation with Iran, calling officials’
war-mongering “not helpful.” Privately, he has
vowed that an attack on Iran “will not happen on my
watch.”
Unfortunately, this level-headed thinking and willingness
to stand up to President Bush may cost him his job. According
to a new article by Thomas P.M. Barnett in the April issue
of Esquire magazine (on newsstands March 12), Fallon may be
prematurely “relieved of his command” as soon
as this summer:
In the Esquire article, Fallon also said that he was in “hot
water” with the White House for meeting with Egyptian
president Hosni Mubarak. Fallon noted that such meetings are
his job, and essential to making sure that regional leaders
don’t get “too spun up” by the administration’s
war rhetoric.
(Article continues below)
In today’s White House press briefing, a reporter asked
spokeswoman Dana Perino about the Esquire piece. Perino refused
to say whether Fallon’s position is secure until the
end of his tenure, instead attacking “rumor mills that
don’t turn out to be true.” Watch it:
According to Barnett’s piece, Fallon also
denied ever calling Petraeus an “ass-kissing little
chickenshit.” He called the allegations “[a]bsolute
bullshit.”
Transcript:
QUESTION: Dana, I know you have (inaudible), but if you’ll
trust me to quote from it, there’s an article in Esquire
magazine about Admiral William Fallon that says this: Because
of Fallon’s caution on Iran, Fallon may soon be unemployed
because he is doing what a generation of young officers in
the U.S. military are now openly complaining that their leadership
didn’t do on their behalf in the run up to the war in
Iraq. He’s standing up to the commander in chief and
he thinks he’s contemplating a strategically unsound
war.
Is that an accurate portrayal of their relationship?
PERINO: You’re right. But before I came here, I told
you I haven’t seen the article. I don’t know who
wrote it. I’ve never heard anything of that sort, except
for in rumor mills that don’t turn out to be true.
So, I’ll check it out, but I don’t think…
(CROSSTALK)
QUESTION: … opposing views on Iran?
PERINO: I don’t know.
(CROSSTALK)
QUESTION: … saying that he’s been in hot water
with the White House because — even meeting with Mubarak.
PERINO: President Bush’s position on Iran is very clear.
It doesn’t mean that other people can’t have other
thoughts or positions, but I’m not going to characterize
Admiral Fallon.
And let me take a look at the article and then we’ll
try to get back to you.
