Obama Presents Gates Medal of Freedom June 30 Video

Robert Gates Final News Conference June 16

Gates Blasts NATO Penny Pinching

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Obama Mulling Earlier Withdrawal from Afghanistan

Obama meets with his national security team today on Afghanistan and Pakistan. He is mulling an earlier withdrawal from Afghanistan. Exiting Defense Secretary Robert Gates warns against withdrawing too soon-- what is too soon? I respect Gates, but I hope Obama chooses to bring most of the troops home, the sooner the better. The troop drawdown is expected to begin in July.

President Obama’s national security team is contemplating troop reductions in Afghanistan that would be steeper than those discussed even a few weeks ago, with some officials arguing that such a change is justified by the rising cost of the war and the death of Osama bin Laden, which they called new “strategic considerations.”

....
But the latest strategy review is about far more than how many troops to take out in July, Mr. Gates and other senior officials said over the weekend. It is also about setting a final date by which all of the 30,000 surge troops will be withdrawn from Afghanistan.

A separate timetable would dictate the departure of all foreign troops by 2014, including about 70,000 troops who were there before the surge, as agreed to by NATO and the Afghan government.Read the rest at NYT

Gates Headed Lakefront to Write Books

After serving eight presidents, Defense Secretary Robert Gates is winding down. Gates says he's not going to be doing much opinion TV. Instead, he's going to write books and get a life:

“I think one of the reasons it’s probably time for me to leave is that sometimes too much experience can get in the way, and you can get too cautious,” Gates told POLITICO as he flew over his native Kansas on the first leg of an overseas farewell tour. “It may … be making me more cautious that I ought to be.”

Gates, a white-haired veteran of generations of Washington power struggles, was the skeptic in two big internal battles ahead of his June 30 retirement: He opposed intervening in Libya, and strongly questioned intelligence behind a risky helicopter raid to kill Osama bin Laden.

Now, the 67-year-old is heading back to his beloved lakefront home in the other Washington, north of Seattle. Gates said he plans to write two books – one a memoir (to be published after 2012), and the other a partly humorous guide to transforming huge public institutions. But he vows that for now, he won’t be popping off. Read the whole thing at Politico

Gates on Obama: One of the Most Courageous Decisions He's Seen a President Make

60 Minutes interview with Defense Secretary Robert Gates airs tonight. Gates has served eight administrations.


Full Gates interview. The biggest doves where uniforms, Gates says:


Also on 60 Minutes, the homegrown, anti-government extremist group Sovereign Citizens, which has about 300,000 members. It sounds like the group holds some tea party like ideology. They don't pay taxes and don't carry driver's licenses or social security cards and they're gun huggers. They've become more violent.

Obama Announces New Security Personnel April 28

Obama announces Leon Panetta will replace Robert Gates as Secretary of Defense. Gen. David Petraeus will replace Panetta at the CIA. Obama nominated John Allen to succeed Petraeus. Lastly, Ryan Crocker will replace Karl Eikenberry as US Ambassador to Afghanistan.

Obama's Schedule April 26

Times are eastern.
9:30 AM
Obama receives the presidential daily briefing.

10:00 AM
Obama receives the economic daily briefing.

11:25 AM
Obama is interviewed by WSB Atlanta, WKYC Cleveland, WTKR Hampton Roads, Virginia, and WXYZ Detroit.

1:00 PM
White House press briefing.

1:40 PM
Obama holds a bilateral meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates.

2:30 PM
Obama holds an expanded bilateral meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates.

4:30 PM
Obama meets with Secretary of Defense Robert Gates.

Soldiers in Iraq Ask Gates If They Will be Paid

Robert Gates, who will be retiring soon, is in Iraq for likely his last time. He thanks the troops and answers questions. The first question out of the gate is if a government shutdown will interfere with paychecks. Gates says they will be paid, but they might not be paid in full and in a timely manner. The fact that Congressional leaders haven't been able to compromise on the budget for the remaining six years of 2011 is sickening. The fact that politics has replaced governing is disgusting. Soldiers, of all people, shouldn't have to worry about a paycheck. Obama and Biden will be facilitating negotiations between Boehner and Reid again today at 1 pm eastern.

Clinton and Gates on Meet the Press March 27

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Savannah Guthrie, bless her heart, is way off on her interpretation of Obama's actions as "reluctance." Sure, he's not a war monger. The Obama administration is acting with humility. It's acting (in our best interests) as a part of the world, not the world dominator. That's the message. It's a crucial message while pro-democracy rebels fight for their rights. The U.S. can help open the door but we can't determine Libya's destiny. Only the Libyan people can do that for themselves.

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Robert Gates in Russia: Attacks in Libya Likely to Scale Back Soon

Defense Secretary Robert Gates is in Russia trying to find common ground on the missile defense shield. But Russia is one of the three countries that decided not to get involved in military action in Libya. China and Germany are the other two. Gates, who is retiring this year, is in a pickle. But he tends to be calm, an unassuming straight shooter. Here's what he had to say about Libya today:

Defense Secretary Robert Gates told reporters Tuesday that plan to transfer command of the mission in Libya to coalition forces is “complicated.”

“We haven’t done something like this on the fly before,” Gates, who is currently overseas on a diplomatic trip to Russia, said.

Added Gates, “It’s not surprising to me that it would take a few days to get it all sorted out.” TRN

Gates says Gadhafi is lying about civilian casualties:

Later, in comments to journalists traveling with him, the U.S. defense secretary pushed back at the Russian criticism, saying he was "curious" about the tone that has been taken.
"It is perfectly evident that the vast majority, if not nearly all, civilian casualties have been inflicted by (Libyan leader Moammar) Gadhafi."
Gates said virtually all the targets are in isolated, non-populated areas and air defense sites.
"We've been very careful about this," Gates said.
"It's almost as though people here are taking at face value Gadhafi's claims about the number of civilian casualties, which, as far as I'm concerned, is just outright lies," he charged. CNN

Gates said as Gadhafi's ability to kill his people declines, military action will decline:

"It just seems logical that once we have the air defense system sufficiently suppressed that the level of military activity would decline."
He suggested there would be a transfer of coalition leadership shortly, as well.
"It will be other members of the coalition that on a day-to-day basis will be sustaining the no-fly zone." CNN

Gates Speaks on Libya

French Fighter Jet Strikes Against Gadhafi

Read more about today's attack in the Washington Post. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks from Paris. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates is monitoring events from Washington. It should be noted that Germany, China and Russia are the three countries not taking part in the military action. Obama spoke on Libya from Brazil today. 

French fighter jet pilots prep:

Readout of Obama's Meeting With Gates and Petraeus

From the White House:

The President, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, and General David Petraeus met today to discuss our ongoing efforts in Afghanistan, including the effectiveness of the military surge, the growth of the Afghan National Security Forces, and President Karzai’s expected March 21 announcement on beginning transition to Afghan security lead. They also discussed the plan to begin the reduction of U.S. forces this July, and the path to completing the transition to full Afghan responsibility for security by the end of 2014.

Petraeus updates Congress:

Gates Not Keen on Military Action in Libya

Gates in Afghanistan Apologizing for Civilian Deaths

As Robert Gates arrives in Afghanistan to apologize for killing nine children amidst chants of "death to America," John Kerry, John McCain and others are talking about leveling Libyan airfields and instating a no-fly zone. The Obama administration appears to be exercising restraint, which in my mind, is the best thing the U.S. can do. The U.S. can't be the mastermind of change in the the Arab world. Only the people there can make change and they've proven they can do it themselves. Any action the U.S. takes should be taken in coordination with other nations.

U.S. defense secretary Robert Gates landed in Kabul earlier today on an unannounced two-day visit to meet with Afghan president Hamid Karzai, top U.S. and NATO commander Gen. David Petraeus, and other leaders (NYT, AP, Reuters, WSJ). Gates said that both the Afghan and U.S. governments believe the U.S. military should be involved in Afghanistan after 2014.

Gates's visit comes as Karzai rejected Petraeus's rare personal apology over the deaths of nine Afghan civilians in a NATO airstrike in Kunar last week, calling it "not enough" and asserting that civilian casualties are "the main cause of a worsening relationship between Afghanistan and the U.S." (WSJ, NYT, AFP, CNN, Reuters, AJE, Pajhwok, McClatchy). Some 500 protesters in Kabul demonstrated against civilian casualties on Sunday, burning an effigy of U.S. president Barack Obama and chanting "Death to America." Read the rest at Foreign Policy

Gates on Libya

Gates Speech on Defense Budget Jan. 6

Read a summary of which military branches win/lose what at Stars and Stripes.

Today, I am announcing a number of decisions and measures that mark the next major step in this Department’s reform agenda.

First, I will provide an update on our efforts – within the military services, and in the Department as a whole – to generate efficiency savings by reducing overhead costs, improving business practices, or culling excess or troubled programs.

Second, I’ll summarize the substantial investments that the military departments will be able to make in high priority capabilities and programs –investments made possible by the savings identified by the service leadership;

And third, I will describe how these reform efforts – if followed through to completion – will make it possible to protect the U.S. military’s size, reach and fighting strength despite a declining rate of growth – and eventual flattening – of the defense budget over the next five years.

I believe it important to present all of these interconnected changes in full and in context, so my opening remarks will be long. And I want to thank you and Admiral Mullen for your patience in advance. Copies of this statement will be passed out following the briefing.

At the outset, I want to emphasize that while America is at war and confronts a range of future security threats, it is important to not repeat the mistakes of the past by making drastic and ill-conceived cuts to the overall defense budget. At the same time, it is imperative for this department to eliminate wasteful, excessive, and unneeded spending. To do everything we can to make every defense dollar count.

As a reminder, over the last two defense budgets submitted by President Obama, we have reformed and rebalanced the department’s spending habits and priorities, curtailing or cancelling troubled or excess programs that would have cost more than $300 billion if seen through to completion. At the same time, we increased investments in proven capabilities most relevant both to the current wars and to the most likely and lethal future threats. This follows the overall approach to budgeting set by the President: use precious taxpayer dollars to invest in key priorities critical to the core mission while cutting or reforming programs that are outdated, duplicative, or ineffective.

At this point, I should note the failure of the Congress to pass a defense appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2011. Operating at significantly reduced funding levels under a continuing full year resolution would cause this department severe problems, likely requiring us to curtail critical activities needed to support our troops and carry out our national security mission.

Last spring, in recognition of the fiscal pressures the country is facing, we launched a comprehensive effort to reduce the department’s overhead expenditures. The goal was – and is – to sustain the U.S. military’s size and strength over the long term by reinvesting those efficiency savings in force structure and other key combat capabilities.

The military services were instructed to find at least $100 billion in savings that they could keep and shift to higher priority programs. Under Secretary Ash Carter also launched an effort to get better value and results in the contracting arena for defense goods and services.

Then in August, I announced a set of initiatives aimed at reducing overhead costs and improving efficiency across the department as a whole – with special attention to the massive headquarters and support bureaucracies outside the four military services.

First, the military department savings.

To achieve the savings targets set last year, the uniformed service leadership conducted a thorough and vigorous scrub of our military’s bureaucratic structures, business practices, modernization programs, civilian and military personnel levels, and associated overhead costs – identifying savings that totaled approximately $100 billion over five years.

The Air Force proposed efficiencies measures that will total some $34 billion over five years. Among those proposals are:

Consolidating two air operations centers in the U.S. and two in Europe;
Consolidating three numbered Air Force staffs;
Saving $500 million by reducing fuel and energy consumption within the Air Mobility Command;
Improving depot and supply chain business processes to sustain weapons systems, thus improving readiness at lower cost; and
Reducing the cost of communications infrastructure by 25 percent.
The Army proposed $29 billion in savings over the five years. These include:

Reducing manning by more than 1,000 civilian and military positions by eliminating unneeded task forces and consolidating six installation management commands into four;
Saving $1.4 billion in military construction costs by sustaining existing facilities; and
Beginning consolidating the service’s email infrastructure and data centers, which should save $500 million over five years.
The Department of the Navy proposed savings of more than $35 billion over five years. Those measures include:

Reducing manpower ashore and reassigning 6,000 personnel to operational missions at sea;
Using multi-year procurement to save more than $1.3 billion on the purchase of new airborne surveillance, jamming, and fighter aircraft;
Disestablishing staffs for submarine, patrol aircraft, and the destroyer-squadrons plus one carrier strike group staff. Read the rest

Gates Meets With Troops in Afghanistan

I really like Robert Gates. For a defense guy, he's humble and genuine. Next week, Obama will receive a review of the strategy in Afghanistan. I wish the Ghost of Wars past would tell Obama to wrap it up in Afghanistan.

Hillary Clinton and Robert Gates Push Russia Treaty Ratification

In an op-ed for the Washington Post, Hillary Clinton and Robert Gates push for the ratification of the START treaty. Standing in the way: republicans. Same old story.

For decades, American inspectors have monitored Russian nuclear forces, putting into practice President Ronald Reagan's favorite maxim, "Trust, but verify." But since the old START Treaty expired last December, we have relied on trust alone. Until a new treaty comes into force, our inspectors will not have access to Russian missile silos and the world's two largest nuclear arsenals will lack the stability that comes with a rigorous inspection regime. WaPo

The republicans' beef, per Lindsey Graham who was on This Week Sunday, is that they want the ability to "modernize" our nuclear arsenal. I'm sure there is a Halliburton of the nuclear arsenal world waiting in the wings for its payday. Heck, maybe it is Halliburton.

By voting in more republicans, we also voted for more war, more neanderthal thinking on foreign policy. But for some strange reason, Americans believe the government can create jobs and when the government created it's own jobs, everyone got mad. Yes, I'm bitter.

Update: to get the treaty done, and this ought to do it, Obama offers $4 billion extra for the nuclear arsenal:

The administration is scrambling to get enough Republican support in the Senate to ratify the New START treaty before the Democrats' majority shrinks by six in January. In a sign of the urgency of the administration's pitch, government officials traveled to Kyl's home state of Arizona to brief him on the proposal, the aide said. Officials also briefed Republican Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee.
"This is a huge increase," said Daryl Kimball, head of the private Arms Control Association. He noted that it is not certain that Congress will approve the funding, which will in any case have to be appropriated over time for each of the years in the proposal.
The aide said that the administration has also conveyed to Republican lawmakers that its offer is contingent on passing the treaty before the end of the year and that Democratic support for the increased funding would likely evaporate, if the treaty stalls.msnbc