Althouse: Get ready for Ashton Carter.

December 2, 2014

Get ready for Ashton Carter.

Obama's pick for Secretary of Defense.

41 comments:

The Drill SGT said...: LOL, I'll find the prediction :); 12/2/14, 8:44 AM
The Drill SGT said...: The Drill SGT said...
Panetta was the SecDef that Obama thought he wanted, until Panetta got the job and within 60 days announced that the Obama defense cuts were going too far. As a former OMB Director, Obama thought P would be his hatchet man, but Panetta is to much of a Patriot and too smart to get blamed for that.

So Hagel in, Panetta out.

SR and VJ wanted a SecDef that would not get in the way of WH Defense strategy.

Hagel may not be the brightest bulb, but he could tell that a half assed plan that just pricked ISIS was just going to cost lives and treasure and result in defeat. He listen to the generals too much so he had to go.

Expect the Current DEPSECDEF to be Acting for a long time... Unless Ashton Carter will take it. I think he might if he thinks Flournoy has the edge for Hillary's SECDEF.

12/1/14, 9:36 AM Delete; 12/2/14, 8:46 AM
garage mahal said...: This is a bad hire, right?; 12/2/14, 8:48 AM
Original Mike said...: "Get ready for Ashton Carter"

Suuuucker.; 12/2/14, 8:49 AM
David said...: So Obama picks a white male when there was a qualified woman (Flournoy) available for the job. (Or not available, as some stories say she declined when the feelers went out to her. She would rather work for President Hillary Clinton, the stories said.)

Who knows? Certainly we never will.

It's a conventional pick of a guy who in the past has always been on the short list for top spots but never got selected. A Harvard guy. I wonder what the professional military types think of him?

Carter does have a good PR machine. All of the top hits on Google said about the same thing about him. His Wikipedia post read like a press release from his PR firm.

The guy has lots of credentials. And you know how important credentials are.; 12/2/14, 8:55 AM
The Drill SGT said...: garage mahal said...
This is a bad hire, right?

My wife says he's a competent a$$hole, but i've worked for competent a$$holes before. They get the job done. It's the incompetent a$$holes that will get you killed...

see the WH staff...

seriously GM, he's about as good as we can expect given the WH job requirements, the last quarter of this Admin, and tough sledding in the Senate.

who else wants it? He's the last guy on the list.; 12/2/14, 8:57 AM
David said...: garage mahal said...
This is a bad hire, right?

Who knows? We will all find out as we go along.; 12/2/14, 8:58 AM
Wince said...: Al Sharpton wasn't available?; 12/2/14, 9:00 AM
Insufficiently Sensitive said...: His Wikipedia post read like a press release from his PR firm.

Exactly. One wonders if the whole CV has been recently edited on Wikipedia by his hagiographers.

'But is there no one to malign?
'Then Ashton Carter wants the sign.; 12/2/14, 9:00 AM
Wince said...: Ashton Kutcher wasn't available?; 12/2/14, 9:01 AM
furious_a said...: "Secretary" as in "Cabinet Officer" or as in "Sit on Obama's lap an take dictation"?; 12/2/14, 9:25 AM
mccullough said...: Nothing like the fourth string quarterback; 12/2/14, 9:43 AM
Beta Rube said...: I really don't think he's past the whole Demi Moore thing yet.; 12/2/14, 9:57 AM
richard mcenroe said...: If Obama likes him he's bad for America.

Possibly oversimplified but sadly the way to bet it.; 12/2/14, 10:04 AM
madAsHell said...: Smells like Grecian formula.; 12/2/14, 10:12 AM
tim maguire said...: garage mahal said...
This is a bad hire, right?

Why do you say that? What's wrong with him?; 12/2/14, 10:34 AM
NCMoss said...: Will Ashton be ready for the real world or will he be another mediocre policy wonk like Austan Goulsbee?; 12/2/14, 10:34 AM
The Drill SGT said...: Tom Gallagher said...
Will Ashton be ready for the real world or will he be another mediocre policy wonk like Austan Goulsbee?

He was the USD(ATL) (DoD #3) from 09-11, and DepSecDef (DoD #2) from 11-13, so he knows the real outside world, but likely does not know the full range of humiliations that will be heaped on him by BHO, VJ and SR. I suspect that he thinks he does and can work through it, but Gates and Panetta likely didn't admit to all the abuse ('battered SecDef syndrome') and they were better men than he is and SR wants to dominate him...; 12/2/14, 10:43 AM
chillblaine said...: What's really important right now is full integration of women into combat units. I hope he is up to the job.; 12/2/14, 10:43 AM
chillblaine said...: Also policing sexual harassment in the ranks. Other top priority.; 12/2/14, 10:46 AM
FleetUSA said...: Looks like a potential Pajama Boy; 12/2/14, 10:55 AM
Bill said...: His Wikipedia entry is prefaced by the following: This article appears to be written like an advertisement.; 12/2/14, 11:01 AM
Roughcoat said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 12/2/14, 11:32 AM
Bobby said...: No, he's actually not a bad pick at all. His background on nuclear issues is stellar, his work on Nunn-Lugar was first-rate, and he's extremely knowledgeable about the emerging weapons systems and technologies. He's kind of an egg head, but the troops get enough leadership from the uniformed ranks that we don't need the SECDEF to be Tony Robbins.

But it's all academic right now.

Theoretically, bringing in Aaron Rodgers or Andrew Luck at QB is a great personnel move... But if the coach isn't going to call passing plays and the offensive line isn't going to block and the receivers aren't going to catch the ball... Well, you wouldn't expect Rodgers or Luck to put up a whole lot of yards or touchdowns.; 12/2/14, 11:39 AM
Jason said...: If he goes in, I predict a lot of DoD staff will start looking for opportunities elsewhere.; 12/2/14, 11:51 AM
David Smith said...: His advertisement on Wikipedia is impressive (although the bit about his pioneering work on our reset with Russia isn't wearing well) but, seriously, is it a good sign that he posted the new job offer to his Twitter feed before the POTUS had a chance to announce it?

Or, more to the point, is it a good sign that the DepSecDef has a twitter feed at all? Don't we want adults with better things to do than to troll for "followers" in these positions?; 12/2/14, 11:53 AM
Bobby said...: David Smith,

Haha, I'll never pass on a chance to bash Twitter! I don't have and don't follow it, so I didn't know he did that. But I'm guessing that he cleared it with the appropriate White House staffer... And if he didn't, then I think that speaks volumes on how he intends to inteface with the White House staff (and in which case, he might not be long for this position)...; 12/2/14, 12:12 PM
James Pawlak said...: Whoever Lord Obama selects will forward his efforts to weaken and destroy the USA.
Please see the US Constitution at Article-III, Section-3.; 12/2/14, 12:18 PM
William said...: Well, they said Ashton could never replace Charley Sheen, but he made a go of it. And his rocky marriage to Demi Moore certainly taught him lessons that every Secretary of Defense should know. Obama is really thinking outside the box with this one, but sometimes you have to throw the dice.; 12/2/14, 12:32 PM
pm317 said...: @The Drill SGT, who is SR?; 12/2/14, 12:57 PM
Hagar said...: Friends and enemies do not think the US armed forces will be in a condition to do much until some time, perhaps a long time, after Obama leaves office.; 12/2/14, 1:26 PM
richard mcenroe said...: If Obama wants him, he's bad for America. I'm sorry, but that's just the way to bet it...; 12/2/14, 1:27 PM
The Drill SGT said...: pm317 said...
@The Drill SGT, who is SR?

Susan Rice who runs the WH National Security Council as the National Security Advisor...; 12/2/14, 1:37 PM
Achilles said...: I am curious. Will he continue the current purge of the senior officers? Will he continue the degradation of readiness of the actual combat units?

At this point I am not sure if those are rhetorical questions or not.; 12/2/14, 1:40 PM
pm317 said...: Ah.. Susan Rice, of course.,

the video maven..; 12/2/14, 1:44 PM
heyboom said...: Wait, I thought Buddy Hackett died years ago?; 12/2/14, 1:51 PM
Matt Sablan said...: I did a lot of writing for DCMA when his Better Buying Power was a thing. I actually think he's a good pick.; 12/2/14, 2:44 PM
Jason said...: Susan Rice tweets. It's an embarrassment. She's such a joke in that position.; 12/2/14, 3:45 PM
The Drill SGT said...: Jason said...
Susan Rice tweets. It's an embarrassment. She's such a joke in that position.

Exactly. the NSA should be talking to the POTUS and keeping her mouth shut to the press. Particularly when one seems as truth challenged as Rice.; 12/2/14, 5:23 PM
Lance said...: "His advertisement on Wikipedia is impressive (although the bit about his pioneering work on our reset with Russia isn't wearing well)"

I noticed that when the CNN article listed the threats facing the new SecDef, it mentioned ISIS and Afghanistan, but not Russia or China. I find that odd.; 12/2/14, 7:40 PM
Whitey Sepulchre said...: This is a bad hire, right?; 12/2/14, 8:24 PM