President Obama Meets With U.S. Military Leaders Over The Growing Problem Of Sexual Assaults In The Military

U.S. President Barack Obama (3rd L) speaks to the media as he sits between Secretary of Defense Chucck Hagel and General Dempsey. Reuters/Yuri Gripas

Obama: Pentagon Leaders 'Ashamed' Over Sexual Assaults Plaguing Military -- CNN

(CNN) -- U.S. military leaders are "angry" and "ashamed" over sexual assaults plaguing the armed forces, President Barack Obama said Thursday after ordering top Pentagon officials to "leave no stone unturned" in the effort to stop the abuse.

The president's comments came the same day legislation was introduced in Congress to ease the victims' quest for justice, a move that followed news this month of two high-profile cases involving sexual assault in the military -- allegedly by the very service members tasked with preventing such crimes.

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More News On President Obama Meeting With U.S. Military Leaders Over The Growing Problem Of Sexual Assaults In The Military

Obama Emphasizes Concern About Sexual Assault in Military -- US Department of Defense
Dempsey: Sexual Assault Constitutes Crisis in Military -- US Department of Defense
Barack Obama: US military 'ashamed' about sexual assault -- AP
Obama deplores sex crimes in military, says there’s ‘no silver bullet’ -- Washington Post
Top U.S. general warns of sexual assault 'crisis,' meets Obama -- Reuters
US military forced to face ‘crisis’ over sexual assault cases -- The Independent
US military leaders vow to tackle sexual assault issue as Congress pledges action -- The Guardian
Army chief: Time to fight against sex assault -- US News and World Report

Picture Of The Day

The USS Nimitz, left, and the Military Sealift Command dry cargo ammunition ship USNS Richard E. Byrd conduct a replenishment in the Pacific Ocean, April 28, 2013. The Nimitz and Carrier Air Wing 11 left San Diego for a deployment in the western Pacific. U.S. Navy photo by Seaman Kole E. Carpenter

Donald Rumsfeld’s Leadership ABCs

On Afghanistan, Benghazi And Critics: Donald Rumsfeld’s Leadership ABCs -- Washington Post

Donald Rumsfeld is a collector. His new book, “Rumsfeld’s Rules,” is a compendium of the leadership mantras he began stockpiling in a shoebox when growing up in Chicago, added to his files when serving in the Nixon administration, then printed out for Gerald Ford when acting as the president’s chief of staff. They include quotes from Carl von Clausewitz on war, from Rep. Mo Udall on meetings and from Rumsfeld himself on lessons from his own career.

He continued to add to these rules throughout his tenure, perhaps most notably and controversially as secretary of defense during the George W. Bush administration, before compiling them at age 80 into the book released Tuesday. In this interview, edited for length and clarity, Rumsfeld spoke with On Leadership editor Lillian Cunningham about managing budget cuts and bureaucracy at the Defense Department, offering lessons on Benghazi, and facing his critics.

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My Comment: Those who admire Donald Rumsfeld will enjoy reading this post. Those who do not will ignore it.

President Obama: The U.S. Will Not Act Alone On Syria

US President Barack Obama is shielded from the rain by a Marine during a press conference in Washington Thursday. © REUTERS/ Jason Reed

Obama Says U.S. Won't Act Alone On Syria -- L.A. Times

He rules out unilateral military action even if chemical weapons use is proved.

WASHINGTON — President Obama on Thursday ruled out unilateral U.S. military action in Syria even if proof emerges that Syrian forces have used lethal chemical weapons.

"This is … an international problem," Obama said at a White House news conference with visiting Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. "It's not going to be something that the United States does by itself. And I don't think anybody in the region would think that U.S. unilateral actions … would bring about a better outcome."

Obama's warnings since August that Syrian President Bashar Assad would cross a "red line" if his forces used poison gas in the nation's civil war were widely viewed as a trigger for potential U.S. military intervention.

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Update #1: Obama: U.S. preserves diplomatic, military options on Syria -- Reuters
Update #2: Obama tells Turkey: 'US will not attack Assad alone' -- The National
Update #3: Obama Keeps Diplomatic, Military Options Open in Syria -- RIA Novosti

My Comment: President Obama does not want to step into the Syrian quagmire .... and I certainly do not blame him.

U.S. Witness Protection Lost Track Of 'Known Or Suspected Terrorists'

U.S. Lost Track Of Two With Known Or Suspected Terror Ties -- CNN

Washington (CNN) -- The U.S. Marshals Service lost track of two former participants in the federal Witness Security Program "identified as known or suspected terrorists," according to the public summary of an interim Justice Department Inspector General's report obtained by CNN.

The Marshals Service has concluded that "one individual was and the other individual was believed to be residing outside of the United States," according to the summary.

A Justice Department official said in response to follow up questions about the matter by reporters on Thursday that the pair had left the program years ago and had been accounted for.

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More On The Witness Protection Program Losing Two Former "Known Or Suspected Terrorists"

Terrorists given new identities allowed to board commercial flights, watchdog finds -- Washington Post
Watchdog: Witness protection lost track of 'known or suspected terrorists,' let others board planes -- FOX News
Justice Dept. Lost Track of 2 Former Terrorists, Report Says -- New York Times
Justice Department Lost Track of Terrorists in Witness Protection -- US News and World Report
US govt 'lost' terror suspects in witness program -- AFP
Handling of terrorists in witness protection questioned -- USA Today
US Marshals Service loses two terrorists -- The Hill
US loses track of terrorists in witness protection: Poor data sharing blamed -- Christian Science Monitor

Pentagon's Special Operations Chief Sees 10 To 20 More Years Of War Against al-Qaida

Photo: Michael A. Sheehan. Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict. US Department of Defense

Pentagon Spec Ops Chief Sees ’10 to 20′ More Years of War Against al-Qaida -- Spencer Ackerman, Danger Room

The war in Afghanistan may be winding down. But the Pentagon’s chief of irregular warfare still sees a war against al-Qaida that will last decades, all over the world — a prospect that prompted astonishment and constitutional debate in the Senate.

Asked at a Senate hearing today how long the war on terrorism will last, Michael Sheehan, the assistant secretary of defense for special operations and low-intensity conflict, answered, “At least 10 to 20 years.”

It was just two months ago that the top U.S. intelligence official testified that al-Qaida had been battered by the U.S. into a state of disarray. A year ago, the current CIA director, John Brennan, said that “For the first time since this fight began, we can look ahead and envision a world in which the al Qaeda core is simply no longer relevant.” Just this week, the commander of the Joint Special Operations Command, Army Lt. Gen. Joseph Votel, told a Florida conference that he was looking at missions beyond the counterterrorism manhunt.

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My Comment: So much for President Obama saying that Al Qaeda is irrelevant, and former US Defense Secretary Panetta saying that Al Qaeda has been decimated at the top.

Can Syria's Civil War Last 10 More Years?

Free Syrian Army fighters in the al-Ziyabiya area in Damascus. Photograph: Reuters

Why The Syrian War Could Last Ten Years -- Michael J. Totten, World Affairs

I wouldn’t be surprised if Bashar al-Assad falls sometime soon, but I also will not be surprised if the year 2020 rolls around and Syria has all but ceased to exist as a nation state and he’s still ruling fragments of the ex-country like a Somali-style warlord. Lebanon’s Levantine sectarian war lasted fifteen long years. That doesn’t mean Syria’s Levantine sectarian war will last as long, but it could.

Take a look at the new piece by Gary Brecher (the self-described War Nerd). His use of the Northern Ireland analogy is apt. I’ve used it myself to describe Lebanon’s war, and due to Lebanon’s lack of a sectarian majority, it’s the reason no one, not even Hezbollah, can ever win an offensive war in that country.

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My Comment: Michael Totten makes a very good case. Read it all.