Proof that we have the right defense team on board for the new administration.
“Our military is flexible, well funded, designed to take risk,” Admiral Mullen said in a speech at an evening ceremony of the Nixon Center, a Washington policy institute. “We respond well to orders from civilian authorities.”
Because of those traits, Admiral Mullen said, the military receives vast resources — and then is asked to do even more.
“I believe we should be more willing to break this cycle, and say when armed forces may not always be the best choice to take the lead,” he said. “We must be just as bold in providing options when they don’t involve our participation or our leadership, or even when those options aren’t popular.”
American national security and foreign policy requires “a whole-of-government approach to solving modern problems,” Admiral Mullen said. “And we need to reallocate roles and resources in a way that places our military as an equal among many in government — as an enabler, a true partner.”
Admiral Mullen’s tour as chairman will continue into the new administration, and President-elect Barack Obama has asked the current defense secretary, Robert M. Gates, to stay on. Admiral Mullen’s speech was wholly in sync with remarks made by Mr. Gates, who has delivered a series of talks, remarkable for a Pentagon chief, calling for more resources for civilian agencies responsible for American “soft power,” including the Departments of State, Justice, Commerce and Agriculture.
Awaiting for this dramatic change of business with great anticipation.
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