Michael Yon has Gen McCaffrey's Report

General Barry R McCaffrey Report

Adjunct Professor of International Affairs

December 18, 2007

MEMORANDUM FOR: Colonel Michael Meese

Professor and Head Dept of Social Sciences United States Military Academy

CC: Colonel Cindy Jebb

Professor and Deputy Head Dept of Social Sciences United States Military Academy

SUBJECT: After Action Report—General Barry R McCaffrey USA (Ret)

VISIT IRAQ AND KUWAIT 5-11 DECEMBER 2007

Gen McCaffrey has no love for former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfield as he points out in this memo, by making comments that sound more based on a personal grudge of some nature more then an analytical process. I can't say whether future historians will view Mr Rumsfeld favorably or not. There seems to be a lot of hindsight going into evaluations of the man and maybe his foresight can be questioned, but he was a big force behind the current makeup of our military and had to work with what he had. As they say wish in one hand and put shaving cream in the other and see which one gets full first.

b. THE US ARMY IS TOO SMALL AND POORLY RESOURCED TO CONTINUE SUCCESSFUL COUNTER-INSURGENCY OPERATIONS IN IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN AT THE CURRENT LEVEL:

An active counter-insurgency campaign in Iraq could probably succeed in the coming decade with twenty-five US Brigade Combat Teams. (Afghanistan probably needs two more US combat brigades for a total of four in the coming 15 year campaign to create an operational state— given more robust NATO Forces and ROE). We can probably sustain a force in Iraq indefinitely (given adequate funding) of some 10+ brigades. However, the US Army is starting to unravel.

Our recruiting campaign is bringing into the Army thousands of new soldiers (perhaps 10% of the annual input) who should not be in uniform. (Criminal records, drug use, moral waivers, non-high school graduates, pregnant from Basic Training and therefore non-deployable, lowest mental category, etc.)

We are losing our combat experienced mid-career NCOs’ and Captains at an excessive rate. (ROTC DMG’s, West Pointers, Officers with engineering and business degrees, etc.) Their morale is high, they are proud of their service, they have enormous personal courage—however, they see a nation of 300 million people with only an under resourced Armed Forces at war. The US Army at 400,000 troops is too small to carry out the current military strategy. The active duty US Army needs to be 800,000 strong to guarantee US national security.

The National Guard and Reserves are too small, are inadequately resourced, their equipment is broken or deployed, they are beginning their second involuntary combat deployments, and they did not sign up to be a regular war-fighting force. They have done a superb job in combat but are now in peril of not being ready for serious homeland security missions or deployment to a major shooting war such as Korea.

The modernization of our high technology US Air Force and Navy is imperiled by inadequate Congressional support. Support has focused primarily on the ground war and homeland security with $400 Billion+. We are digging a strategic hole for the US as we mono-focus on counter-insurgency capabilities —while China inevitably emerges in the coming 15 years as a global military power.

He is joining in the "we need more troops" bandwagon, but even he says that the standards of the new recruits is lessening. That is the crux of the problem. It is an All Volunteer force and if people are not willing to volunteer what are you going to do? Bring back the draft? This is the argument that was used to do away with the draft. You can't have it both ways. It has been established that in this country there is a very tiny warrior class. Nothing will change that until we start highlighting the heroics of this current group of service members instead of dragging their names through the mud at every oppurtunity and allowing prominent people to try and turn our soldiers into victims instead of the heroes they are.
In the words of Winston Churchill, "Never have so few, done so much, for so many." At least back in Churchill's days they had the backing of their political leaders unlike today where in this country you have congress members very publicly cursing their action, questioning their abilities, and even pushing for prosecution of the members of the Armed Forces. Imagine having to do your job with a NYTimes reporter ready to report everytime you screwed up the figures on your spreadsheet or ready to air on a cable news show 24 hours a day everytime one of your Powerpoint® slides didn't come out just right.
Until America is ready to publicly acknowledge todays Audie Murphy's, of which there are many, then I don't want to hear whining about you can't get people to do the job.