Nothing to lose and a legacy to gain
Wednesday, January 31, 2007 at 7:59AM ARTICLE: How Bush Can Ensure No More Iraqs: The U.S. is only a few bright ideas away from being the nation builder it needs to be, By Max Boot, Los Angeles Times, January 31, 2007
Great piece by Boot, showing how the SysAdmin/Department of Everything Else can actually be finessed beaucratically into being far more easily than most think.
I know I've been nasty on Bush lately, but I think he really deserves it. He still has huge opportunity to leave the DoD so much better off than he found it, because our difficulties in Iraq mean he's free to make dramtic changes not just in operations but in organization. He's got two years and the best men for the main jobs in the military, but he seems to be passing off more than stepping up.
Boot's points are great: Bush proposed that Civilian Reserves, but unless some bold actions are taken, it's just another good idea left for the next president.
And that's too bad, because Bush really does have the freest hand possible right up to 20 Jan 2009, and he's got virtually nothing to lose and a legacy to gain.
Thanks to an anonymous reader for sending this.
Reader Comments (1)
They tried to make those changes. But the hidebound (personified in a group of retired Generals) won the fight.
And what of all the changes that did get made? You don't find progress there?