JVLV.NET: DAVID PETRAEUS SHOULD BECOME OUR SECRETARY OF STATE! By Jiri Valenta

  Unafraid, Bi-Partisan, Uphold U.S. and Freedom

                                       Unafraid, Bi-partisan, Uphold U.S. and Freedom

Engaged in the longest wars in our history in Afghanistan, Iraq, the still unresolved conflict turned human catastrophe in Syria, and facing new Islamist attacks at home as we just saw in Ohio, the nation awaits a crucial decision; selection of the future Secretary of State. Unsurprisingly, there is a heated, nationwide debate on the subject also ongoing within President-elect Trump’s transition team.  

The last three Secretaries of State were Failures: Why not say it?  Condoleezza Rice, who wrote her first published essay with me, helped to bring us into a war of choice and nation building in Iraq that led to quagmire and a failed state. Hillary Clinton brought us into yet another in Libya. Although we “led from behind” and did not use our own troops, nevertheless, the war produced failed nation building; misery, and the rise of terrorists and chaos -- Not an Arab spring, but Islamist winter!

The tenure of John Kerry saw the rise of the Islamists in Syria and Iraq where IS established an Islamist state. Even today we are not fully able to defeat them and their propaganda on the social media has helped to produce tragedies as in San Bernadino, Orlando and now a close call in Ohio. Following in Hillary’s steps, Kerry continued negotiations with the mullahs in Tehran and produced a weak, even injurious agreement, that has to be changed, either through negotiation or the use of force.  

Precedent for Petraeus; Truman Appointment of Marshall: As at the time of WWII and the turmoil that followed, we are living in times of great disorder and chaos. Our President-elect must act as  President Harry Truman did in 1947; (Harry was much underestimated as is our present President-Elect.) Over others’ objections, Truman appointed as his new Secretary of State, not a civilian but an accomplished warrior and strategist, General George C. Marshall.  

Trump must act in a similar way.  He should not appoint a distinguished business man and GOP politician who is on record declaring that Russia is our main foe at a time when we must try to engage in a new partnership with Russia on Syria. Nor can he appoint a heroic, 9/11 New York mayor.  Both these choices are distinguished and honorable men, but they lack what is needed; multidimensional experience in war, diplomacy and strategizing. Finally, Trump should not appoint a senior diplomat or distinguished senator with expertise only in foreign affairs and legislation. The best man available to fill the post is General David Petraeus.

Trump Considers Two Prominent Generals for Secretaries of State and Defense: Unprecedented. Petraeus has one additional qualification for the present time; specific experience in overall U.S. strategy in the Middle East in general and towards terrorism in particular.  He wrote a 2006 powerful field manual on counter-insurgency with U.S. Marine General [“Mad Dog”]) James Mattis, now top contender for Secretary of Defense.

This remarkable fact shows Trump’s good instincts for prominent appointees with outstanding, relevant experience. There is nothing that would prevent the cooperation of Petraeus and Mattis if they are both selected. There has been traditional tension between Secretaries of State and Defense. Why not try something else and appoint two outstanding generals to those positions? The counter -insurgency manual was put to good use when Petraeus oversaw the Surge, which helped our nation to win at least temporarily in Iraq.

Is Petraeus a Victim of PC? The general’s resignation as CIA Director presumably came because of his indiscreet affair with his biographer, Paula Broadwell, not a foreign national but an American U.S, officer and serious scholar. Some historians like Jean Smith, were wondering. He asked Petraeus, “…whether the Obama administration had taken advantage of his affair to cut his head off.” Petraeus smiled and didn’t reply. When I quizzed him in a letter, he denied it. However, we hope to uncover the whole truth in our forthcoming book on Putin and four American follies.

Here, Petraeus presumably provided his biographer with some classified information for the writing of her book, All In. What is not known, however, is that he took all precautions to make sure nothing would be leaked. He had then Colonel [now General] Mike Meese read the final version of her book to ensure there was nothing classified or politically sensitive. (Meese was the head of  the U.S. Military Academy’s [USMA's] Social Sciences Dept at the time). Damn good book! The naysayers should read it. Show me where Secretary Clinton took such precautionary measures. Unlike Hillary, the general did not use an illegal private server with thousands of negligent official e-mails, that surely provided intelligence to our friends and foes alike.

Hillary also took it upon herself to push the war in Libya, bamboozling the Russians, as Robert Gates reported, into abstaining at the U.N. Security Council on a NATO intervention. Putin has come to mistrust her because her “humanitarian” intervention turned into arming the rebels for regime change. With Qaddafi’s death, Russia lost important economic and military contracts in Libya -- which became another failed state. Then she initiated similar destructive policies in Syria.

As Obama has Learned, Petraeus Stands Up for His Principles: The general stood up to his commander-in-chief, Barack Obama, when the President, for political reasons, tried to withdraw our troops prematurely on the eve of the 2012 election. He objected even more vehemently than Defense Secretary Gates. Anticipate that Petraeus would deal the same way with Trump. He would be a polite but steadfast vicar of Foggy Bottom, putting the country’s interest over the requirements of presidential politics. He, like Marshall with Truman, will provide strong , principled and at times unpopular views.

The general knows he made a mistake. Yet is was a mistake of heart, something we tolerated during WWII in the case of yet another brilliant and indispensable commander, General Ike Eisenhower, with his Scottish chauffeur, Kay Sommersby  The affair was well known. Yet imagine if Ike was treated as David was. We might have jeopardized Operation Overlord. Without a decisive leader who launched the operation in the break of temporary weather conditions over the English Channel despite the judgment of others, we would have had to postpone Liberation of Europe for at least several more months if not for a year. This is also personal; this writer, conceived at that time by an unmarried Jewish woman, might otherwise not be here to tell the tale

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One more thing; it is still not fully clear why the general resigned for his presumed affair a few days after the elections. We know that unlike Hillary’s acolytes, e.g. former Deputy Director of the CIA Mike Morell, he was not very enthusiastic about the famous talking points prepared for Susan Rice on Benghazi-gate. We found out he had some objections to it. Moreover, he did not become, like General John Allen, an attack dog for the DNC during the presidential campaign, or Morell calling Trump a “national security risk.” You did not see him running with an American flag or presiding over audience chanting at one of the political conventions. Like Ike and Marshall, the non-partisan and patriotic soldier was waiting for the outcome without trying to affect it.

Petraeus Appointment a Blow to PC: Donald would be well advised to rehabilitate this prominent PC victim. Besides enduring political recall attempts and other surprises by Hillary, we anticipate Trump himself will be facing some women eager to get financial compensation for unproven sexual harassment charges. Donald has promised to fight PC. David’s appointment as Secretary of State will present a tremendous blow to the purveyors of PC. For all these reasons, the choice is clear. Petraeus should be our Secretary of State.

Distinguished Russologist and national security expert, Dr. Jiri Valenta is the author/editor of several books, and a long-standing member of the Council on Foreign Relations.  He proudly carries the badge of being among only a few of its members who have supported Donald from the very beginning. He, with his co-writer, Leni Friedman Valenta, editor-in-chief of their institute’s website, jvlv.net, is working on a forthcoming book, Vladimir Putin and Four Follies of American Foreign Policy-Making.