[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 176 (Tuesday, December 1, 2009)]
[House]
[Page H13359]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    MICROMANAGEMENT OF THE MILITARY

  (Mr. GOHMERT asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Speaker, I was at Fort Benning when, in 1979, the 
President ordered a rescue mission. But he micromanaged. He dictated. 
They didn't need 12 helicopters; just go in with 8. They knew if they 
didn't get there with six, they'd have to abort. Well, they got there 
with five, and the aborted mission cost us lives. Back in the 1960s, 
President Johnson tried to micromanage Vietnam from Washington. What a 
terrible mistake. And now, it appears that the President will need to 
fire General McChrystal, because it is imperative that the President 
have generals he can trust.
  General McChrystal says, ``The impact of time on our effort in 
Afghanistan has been underappreciated, and we require a new way of 
thinking about it.'' He said, ``I believe the short-term fight will be 
decisive. Failure to gain the initiative and reverse insurgent momentum 
in the near-term (next 12 months)--while Afghan security capacity 
matures--risks an outcome where defeating the insurgency is no longer 
possible.''
  Fire him if you don't trust him. Should have been acted on 3 months 
ago.

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