Ahem… Chain of Command?
This McClatchy story on the apparent tension in the White House over Afghanistan is interesting on many levels. What jumped out at me was this paragraph:
Obama now feels that McChrystal and his superior, Army Gen. David Petraeus , the head of the Central Command, are pressuring him to commit still more troops to Afghanistan , a senior military official said. The official said that retired Marine Gen. James Jones, Obama’s national security adviser, told McChrystal last month not to ask for more troops, but that McChrystal went ahead anyway and indicated in interviews that he may need more.
The military chain of command does not involve the National Security Adviser, something General (ret) Jones should know. Now yes, there’s no indication in this story that Jones was trying to pass on some command, but the wording could be taken as just that. Jones “told McChrystal…” That’s bad form. I’d love to hear Secretary Gates or General Petraeus comment on the matter.