Gen Milley: Traitor

[Mountain Man]

I love them both.

You two-timing stud, you. Just don't let the other find out.

[seanD]

Things are getting mighty heated militarily between US, it's Asian allies and china. It's hard not to assume china's latest brazen and aggressive actions is not somehow related to the fact they know they have a brain dead potus and a US general in their back pocket.

[rogue06]

Things are getting mighty heated militarily between US, it's Asian allies and china. It's hard not to assume china's latest brazen and aggressive actions is not somehow related to the fact they know they have a brain dead potus and a US general in their back pocket.

China has announced that some of their warships will be sailing through Hawaiian waters as a test to see if old Joe even looks up from his ice cream cone.

[Juvenal]

The Lawfare Podcast: Milley, Trump and Civil-Military Relations with Peter Feaver, Kori Schake and Alexander Vindman
.

A new book by Bob Woodward and Robert Costa contains reporting about several controversial actions by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley in late 2000 and early 2021, regarding conversations with his Chinese counterparts, his discussion with senior military officers about following standard nuclear procedures (if need be), and reaching out to others like the CIA and NSA directors to remind them to watch everything closely. Were each of these reported actions proper for a Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and why? And what about all of this coming out in books?

To talk through it all, David Priess sat down with an A-team on civil-military relations. Peter Feaver is a civil-military relations expert at Duke University and director of the Triangle Institute for Security Studies. He served in National Security Council staff positions in both the Bill Clinton and the George W. Bush administrations. Kori Schake is the director of foreign and defense policy at the American Enterprise Institute who has worked in the Joint Staff J5, in the Office of the Secretary of Defense and in the National Security Council’s staff, as well as the State Department's policy planning staff during Bush 43’s administration. She has also researched and written extensively on civil-military relations. And Alex Vindman is Lawfare’s Pritzker Military Fellow and a visiting fellow at Perry World House. His government experience includes multiple U.S. Army assignments, time inside the office of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and in the National Security Council staff.

This episode, which came out yesterday, includes extensive commentary from Vindman expanding on his reasons for calling for Milley's resignation, along with context on the Joint Chiefs responsibilities for mil-mil coordination, and the general meltdown in the National Security apparatus that began in the summer of 2020 which had effectively became complete by the time of the January 6 riot at the Capitol.

[rogue06]

The Lawfare Podcast: Milley, Trump and Civil-Military Relations with Peter Feaver, Kori Schake and Alexander Vindman
.

A new book by Bob Woodward and Robert Costa contains reporting about several controversial actions by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley in late 2000 and early 2021, regarding conversations with his Chinese counterparts, his discussion with senior military officers about following standard nuclear procedures (if need be), and reaching out to others like the CIA and NSA directors to remind them to watch everything closely. Were each of these reported actions proper for a Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and why? And what about all of this coming out in books?

To talk through it all, David Priess sat down with an A-team on civil-military relations. Peter Feaver is a civil-military relations expert at Duke University and director of the Triangle Institute for Security Studies. He served in National Security Council staff positions in both the Bill Clinton and the George W. Bush administrations. Kori Schake is the director of foreign and defense policy at the American Enterprise Institute who has worked in the Joint Staff J5, in the Office of the Secretary of Defense and in the National Security Council’s staff, as well as the State Department's policy planning staff during Bush 43’s administration. She has also researched and written extensively on civil-military relations. And Alex Vindman is Lawfare’s Pritzker Military Fellow and a visiting fellow at Perry World House. His government experience includes multiple U.S. Army assignments, time inside the office of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and in the National Security Council staff.

This episode, which came out yesterday, includes extensive commentary from Vindman expanding on his reasons for calling for Milley's resignation, along with context on the Joint Chiefs responsibilities for mil-mil coordination, and the general meltdown in the National Security apparatus that began in the summer of 2020, and had effectively became complete by the time of the January 6 riot at the Capitol.

Erick Erickson has been floating the idea that Milley was a primary source for Woodward's latest book and had let his ego run wild in recounting his actions.

The thinking goes that the Secretary of Defense Mike Esper was aware of the reports that the Chinese were concerned that Trump would attack, and worrying that they might launch a preemptive strike of their own, had urged Milley and other generals to contact their opposite numbers in China and reassure them. So Milley decided to omit the part about Esper telling him to call China because he wanted to make himself the star of the show and in the process made it look like he took it on himself to call.

Still, that doesn't explain why Milley said what he did (there are other ways to reassure someone than promising to commit treason) or why he tried to usurp the chain of command and demand that lower ranked officers be loyal to him and what he says regardless of what orders they get from the president.

[Mountain Man]

The Lawfare Podcast: Milley, Trump and Civil-Military Relations with Peter Feaver, Kori Schake and Alexander Vindman

Lawfare? More like LOLfare, am I right?

[Juvenal]

Erick Erickson has been floating the idea that Milley was a primary source for Woodward's latest book and had let his ego run wild in recounting his actions.

The thinking goes that the Secretary of Defense Mike Esper was aware of the reports that the Chinese were concerned that Trump would attack, and worrying that they might launch a preemptive strike of their own, had urged Milley and other generals to contact their opposite numbers in China and reassure them. So Milley decided to omit the part about Esper telling him to call China because he wanted to make himself the star of the show and in the process made it look like he took it on himself to call.

Still, that doesn't explain why Milley said what he did (there are other ways to reassure someone than promising to commit treason) or why he tried to usurp the chain of command and demand that lower ranked officers be loyal to him and what he says regardless of what orders they get from the president.

Most of the above is not merely conspiratorial, but counterfactual. For example, it was the Chinese military that reached out to Milley after January 6. The fact that Erickson was either unaware of this or knowingly promoting theories based on that counterfactual is sufficient reason for me to discount the value of including him in my information mix. It's an hour's investment, but listening to the podcast could likely forestall the need for to clarify your position. It's natural enough to be confused by partial information without adding misinformation to the mix.

It's certainly true, however, that Milley was either a source for Woodward or authorized close aides to speak to him, and indeed, that piercing of the fourth wall is a substantial part of Vindman's justification for calling for Milley's resignation. It would be unwise to have the commander in chief excluding top military commanders out of concern that those private councils will be used to promote the military commanders at the president's expense.

[rogue06]

Most of the above is not merely conspiratorial, but counterfactual. For example, it was the Chinese military that reached out to Milley after January 6. The fact that Erickson was either unaware of this or knowingly promoting theories based on that counterfactual is sufficient reason for me to discount the value of including him in my information mix. It's an hour's investment, but listening to the podcast could likely forestall the need for to clarify your position. It's natural enough to be confused by partial information without adding misinformation to the mix.

It's certainly true, however, that Milley was either a source for Woodward or authorized close aides to speak to him, and indeed, that piercing of the fourth wall is a substantial part of Vindman's justification for calling for Milley's resignation. It would be unwise to have the commander in chief excluding top military commanders out of concern that those private councils will be used to promote the military commanders at the president's expense.

Um, you might have missed that I disagreed with his speculation and even listed two reasons why.