[Carlhole]

Petraeus out of step with US top brass

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Asia Times', 'W')ASHINGTON - In sharp contrast to the lionization of General David Petraeus by members of the US Congress during his testimony this week, Petraeus's superior, Admiral William Fallon, chief of the Central Command (Centcom), derided Petraeus as a sycophant during their first meeting in Baghdad in March, according to Pentagon sources familiar with reports of the meeting.

Fallon told Petraeus that he considered him to be "an ass-kissing little chickenshit" and added, "I hate people like that," the sources
say. That remark reportedly came after Petraeus began the meeting by making remarks that Fallon interpreted as trying to ingratiate himself with a superior.

That extraordinarily contentious start of Fallon's mission to Baghdad led to more meetings marked by acute tension between the two commanders. Fallon went on to develop his own alternative to Petraeus's recommendation for continued high levels of US troops in Iraq during the summer.

The enmity between the two commanders became public knowledge when the Washington Post reported on September 9 of intense conflict within the administration over Iraq. The story quoted a senior official as saying that referring to "bad relations" between them is "the understatement of the century"...

[Zardoz]

"Opus" - Sept. 9, 2007:

[TWilliam]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Zardoz', '"')Opus" - Sept. 9, 2007:

[seahorse]

Thank god for Fallon? What's he doing to get the US out other than standing mute griping behind the scenes? Sounds like a chickenshit to me.

[seahorse2]

Ferrell,

I read those reports about Fallon threatening to quit, but, they are only reports, and until his chicken shit ass is reporting on the record to Congress, he's as worthless as the rest of them. He's exactly what he's accusing Petraeus of being, a chickenshit ass kisser. For God's sake, in theory he's Patraeus commander. If he disagrees with Petraeus' assessment, he has a duty to speak up and correct him in front of Congress. But he won't because he's a much a political weasel as Petraeus. The problem with any bureaucracy, including the military, is that the turds all float to the tops of the system.

Those threats about quitting? Please. Sounds like an immature relationship - "I'm leaving." Actions speak louder than words, so quit you chickenshit and join the other retired generals that are speaking out, or, go on the record with Congress, or collect your paycheck, return your salutes, and mumble behind the scenes like a chickenshit.

[Plantagenet]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('ferrelgiraffe', '
')Speaker of the house is the real chicken, she should hold hearings tomorrow.

[Plantagenet]

Petraeus is just a soldier doing his job. His current is to pacify Iraq, and he's doing his best to pacify Iraq. Its does't make any sense to vilify him.

I agree with ferralgiraffe on this one (never thought I'd write that). The people to blame for the continuation of the war are the democrats---they are the ones who lied when they said they would stop the war. The democrats in Congress should stop being so chickenshit and keep their promise to the voters to stop the war. They claimed they were against the war, but when it was time for voting they supported the war by war by sending another $100 billion to Iraq for six more months of war. Here we are, six months later, and the lying dems are about to vote another round of funding for Iraq.

[seahorse2]

Hey plantagent,

The only ones attacking Petraeus are democrats? You think you know that much about me? What about all the republicans that are against the war and also attacked his report? So, Petraeus is just trying to do his job? What, exactly, is that? Blindly follow some policy set out by Bush to keep the war going? Does it include reporting the whole truth to Congress and forming independent assessments as a general about the war, progress, and sustainability to Congress? When generals are honest with Congress, and disagree with the President, they don't last long and get fired.

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'S')hinseki is famous for his remarks to the U.S. Senate Armed Services committee before the war in Iraq in which he said "something in the order of several hundred thousand soldiers" would probably be required for post-war Iraq. Donald Rumsfeld and Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz publicly disagreed with his estimate.[1]

[Plantagenet]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('seahorse2', '
') So, Petraeus is just trying to do his job? ..... Does it include reporting the whole truth to Congress and forming independent assessments as a general about the war, progress, and sustainability to Congress?

[seahorse2]

I did see that dumbass on t.v. "reporting" to congress, or, ass kissing the president's policy. I also saw the chickenshits in CONgress. Like I said, in any bureaucracy, the turds float to the top, just take a look at Bush, CONgress, and Petraeus. They're all a bunch of chickenshit, asskissers. They're all the same. I see no difference between them accept this: that dumbass Petreaus out to take off all those medals "of valor" indicating he has balls that he does not have. Anyone like him, that supposedly leading soldiers from the front into battle, I hold to a higher degree of honor, duty, courage than I do the asskissers in CONgress. Shinseki had courage, Petreaus is nothing but a second string ass kisser in a losing game.

[Plantagenet]

IMHO, Petraeus did a good job defending his views in his congressional testimony. He's obviously incredibly bright and a brave guy....the US commanding general in Iraq is the #1 target of Al qaida and its loony suicide killers as well as the rest of the religous nuts there, and Petraus knows it.

He didn't even have to break a sweat to upstage the hostile congress.