Top US military chief to stand down

Top US military chief to stand down
By Demetri Sevastopulo in Washington
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2007
Published: June 8 2007 22:17 | Last updated: June 8 2007 23:24


The White House has decided not to nominate General Peter Pace for a second term as chairman of the joint chiefs of staff after senators signalled that the move would spark a divisive battle on Capitol Hill.

Robert Gates, US defence secretary, had intended to recommend the four-star general for another two-year term. But he said he changed his mind after talks with Republicans and Democrats. It became clear that his renomination could be “quite contentious”. He said: “I concluded that because Gen Pace has served as chairman and vice-chairman of the joint chiefs of staff for the last six years, the focus of his confirmation process would have been on the past rather than the future.

“I’ve decided that at this moment in our history, the nation, our men and women in uniform and Gen Pace himself would not be well-served by a divisive ordeal”.

Mr Gates announced he would recommend Admiral Michael Mullen, the chief of naval operations, to President George W. Bush for the position. According to the journalist Bob Woodward’s book, “Plan of Attack”, Adml Mullen was previously considered for the job before having a run-in with Donald Rumsfeld, who was fired as defence secretary after the Democrats retook Congress.

The White House decision not to nominate Gen Pace – the first marine to hold the post – underscores growing dissent on Capitol Hill over the Bush administration’s handling of the Iraq war. Gen Pace was appointed by Mr Rumsfeld after the retirement of Gen Richard Myers.

The White House said Mr Gates had told Mr Bush a few weeks ago that consultations with senators – who must approve the nomination – were not going well.

“In response to a request from Secretary Gates, I solicited the views of a broad range of senators,” Carl Levin, the Democratic chairman of the Senate armed services committee said on Friday. “I found that the views of many senators reflected my own – namely that a confirmation hearing on Gen Pace’s reappointment would have been a backward-looking debate about the last four years.”

Critics accused Gen Pace and Gen Myers of being weak chairmen who allowed Mr Rumsfeld to emasculate the role. John McCain, the top Republican on the Senate armed services committee, once sparked laughter at a hearing when he told Gen Myers that his response was not required because he would only repeat what Mr Rumsfeld had just said.

According to “Plan of Attack”, Gen James Jones, the former US commander in Europe, also told Gen Pace before he took the post that he “should not be the parrot on the secretary’s shoulder”.