Sen. John McCain was on NBC’s Meet The Press today, where he praised President Barack Obama for removing Gen. Stanley McChrystal from command in Afghanistan. McCain said, “Yes, I think that the president realized that this was an important moment, and he made the right decision.”
Here is the video from Meet The Press:
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Moderator David Gregory asked McCain if Obama did the right thing by firing McChrystal, and for once McCain did not hesitate in his answer, “Yes, he did, and he took the appropriate steps, in my view. I would like to say, in General McChrystal’s behalf, that he played a key role in Iraq in the efforts against al-Qaeda. A lot of this is not known and will–may never be known. But General McChrystal did a great job there. The president took appropriate action, and we wish General McChrystal well in the future.”
Gregory then followed up by asking if this was important moment for the commander in chief. McCain answered, “Yes. Yes, I think that the president realized that this was an important moment, and he made the right decision.” McCain also made it clear that McChrystal’s behavior was unacceptable, “First of all, there’s no excuse for it, OK? There’s no excuse for it. But part of it, some of it was frustration. Part of it was a group of officers who find themselves with a night off which they did not expect, having been working 24/7 in Kabul. They went out in a social environment. And I must tell you that as a young Navy pilot that on occasion at happy hour some things were said about our commanding officer that maybe we wouldn’t want to be held responsible for. But that does not excuse anything. But it certainly maybe understands the–makes people understand the circumstances a little better. But, overall, you just, you just can’t do those things, and we expect our officer corps to have the maturity to realize that.”
The old soldier McCain obviously did not see the firing of McChrystal as a partisan political issue. I don’t say this very often, but John McCain was 100% correct. Obama, as the commander in chief could not have tolerated the sort of insubordination that McChrystal demonstrated. If Obama would have kept him around, he would have lost the respect of the military, which made this was an important, but largely ignored, moment for Obama’s leadership. Obama had to reaffirm his strength as commander in chief, and he did so in a way that should make it clear to the military, exactly who is in charge.
I wish more of the Right would support the President during these tough times. They don’t have to agree with him, but they can have policy disagreements based on facts and ideology that don’t need to come from the place of utter contempt and pettiness for a lost election.
I’m very glad John McCain isn’t our President, but I’m also really glad he did the honorable thing here. As a military man, he knows that McChrystal was out of line. I’m also glad he reminded people, as the President did, that McChrystal has a long record of good service to our country. There’s no reason to vilify him, just as there’s no reason to vilify the President when the Right doesn’t agree with him.
I agree. At least McCain has some integrity somewhere. I was beginning to wonder. Obama had to do what he did. McChrystal must have been looking for some degree of a public profile to have granted such a request to Rolling Stone in the first place. Somehow his demands for extra troops were leaked last year. Even though Obama deliberated for some time before making a decision on sending extra troops, maybe McChrystal thinks that’s how to get things done through public humiliation. I think this incident was embarrassing for the President and the country. Remarks were made about our French allies and it is my understanding that those remarks are what infuriated the President immediately. I give General McChrystal credit at being a good soldier for this country, but I would seriously have to question his leadership ability in high command because he doesn’t have a broad enough perspective and he needs too much attention. A great General sets an example with the line of command and puts his country first.
I have always thought the highest of McCain, but the constant pandering to the church of whats happening now is taking away from what is otherwise a brilliant career. Saying on one side we are all gods children about immigrants, then saying they must be sent home and a thousand other examples detracts what good thing man has done. You are only as good as your last interview or statement in Washington. Today he is a good guy
On the other hand, there is no future for General McChrystal. He is done. Fried and laid out on paper towels. There is no place he can go now and have credibility in a military job. Another thing is I think the story is this was a bar rom discourse. it wasn’t. The rolling stone had access to the general for a month
“Let’s stipulate that allowing a reporter from Rolling Stone with a skeptic’s view of the war in Afghanistan unfettered access for a month was not the best career move. But those who’ve read the full piece by Michael Hastings — as opposed to just the juicy bits being tossed around cable news — might be forgiven for wondering what exactly got him whacked so quickly. Or at least, you might wonder if it has less to do with what the general said and more to do with the relentless velocity and recklessness of the modern media ecosystem.”
“On the other hand, there is no future for General McChrystal.”
His penance for voting for Obama.
As a military veteran, John McCain is keenly aware of military protocol. This is a welcome exception to his recent record of pandering the the far right, and is a bright spot against the bleak reality of his willingness to debase himself in order to win.
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As far as I know, the military has a rule that you cannot publically disgree with the President’s policies, as he is the Commander-in-Chief. Obama took the right action here by relieving McChrystal. It’s unfortunate that McChrystal said what he said, given his record of service. But he should have known better than to open up his mouth. If he doesn’t agree with Obama and thinks he’s an idiot, McChrystal should have resigned first.
McCain had no other option unless he wanted to paint himself in a way that he would personally find unbearable. Lip service to the Far Right is fine with him when it’s simply a matter of “conscience” – because he has no dog in that fight.