RSSRobert Gates: I Was “Disturbed” By Barack Obama’s “Absence of Passion, This Absence of Conviction [on Afghanistan] of the Importance of Success that Disturbed Me”
Barack Obama, Commander in Chief?
More from Gates-gate: Former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates did his first TV interview with CBS this weekend following the release of exerts from his soon to be released book, ‘Duty.’ Gates said was disturbed by Barack Obama’s lack of conviction on success in Afghanistan. Gates was also critical of Obama’s absence of passion when it came to his making the troops believe that Obama supported him. Gates went in to say that this was not the case when he was secretary of defense under George W. Bush. Gates is basically accusing Obama of just providing lip service to the troops. Gates defended his statements in his new book as the liberal MSM looks to discredit him. However, Gates is getting it from both sides of the aisle as some Republicans are criticizing the former Secretary of Defense for not disclosing his tactical disputes with the Obama administration during his tenure as secretary.
“It’s one thing to tell the troops that you support them. It’s another to work at making them believe that you believe as president that their sacrifice is worth it, that the cause is just, that what they are doing was important for the country, and that they must succeed,” said Gates. “President Bush did that with the troops when I was Secretary. I did not see President Obama do that. As I write in the book, it was this absence of passion, this absence of a conviction of the importance of success that disturbed me.”
One would think that it is a presidents job when you are the Commander in Chief and sending America’s sons and daughters, mothers and fathers into harms way and potentially make the ultimate sacrifice that a president have convictions for a mission. It is just too bad that Obama did not have the same passion and conviction toward the individuals that protect our freedoms than he does for Obamacare or campaigning.
Gates praises Mr. Obama for facing down political opposition from his own party. Yet he also offers some tough criticism of the president, suggesting that at times he was skeptical of his own strategy in Afghanistan.
“You say about President Obama that as much as you admired him on so many levels, he never really had a passion for pursuing the war in Afghanistan, and that kind of bothered you,” said Braver.
“It’s one thing to tell the troops that you support them. It’s another to work at making them believe that you believe as president that their sacrifice is worth it, that the cause is just, that what they are doing was important for the country, and that they must succeed,” said Gates. “President Bush did that with the troops when I was Secretary. I did not see President Obama do that. As I write in the book, it was this absence of passion, this absence of a conviction of the importance of success that disturbed me.”
What’s more, he is harshly critical of some of the president’s staffers.
He called the national security staff under President Obama the most micromanaging and controlling since Richard Nixon and Henry Kissinger. Braver asked, “Did you ever tell the president about it directly?”
“No,” Gates said. “And I acknowledge that in the book.”
“Should you have, do you think?”
“Well, first of all, things don’t happen that way if the president doesn’t want them to happen that way.”
“Do you have a sense that’s changed? Or do you think they are still running things from the White House?”
“I actually think it’s gotten worse,” Gates laughed.
And then there were his disagreements with the Number 2 man in Washington.
“You are not very flattering to Vice President Biden in this book,” said Braver.
“Actually I think I am in some areas complimentary of him,” Gates responded, “but where I had a particular problem with the vice president was in his encouragement of suspicion of the military and the senior military with the president: ‘You can’t trust these guys. They’re gonna try and jam you. They’re gonna try and box you in,’ and so on. And that did disturb me a lot.”
The outcry over Gates’ criticism of Biden led to that White House solidarity photo op of the president and vice president this past week.
