Mercy! Mercy! That Dang Nabed PERCY!

Duty

I have just finished reading "Duty: The Memories of a Secretary of Defense," by Robert Gates. It has my mind spinning as my brain struggles to absorb all that he had to say.

Perhaps it is best to start with what he doesn’t say. After seeing the interview with Sean Hannity I expected some Obama bashing. Hannity had highlighted several quotes, one of which said that President Obama, did the right thing, but never really had his heart in the wars being waged in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Gates said over and over that he held Bush and Obama in high regard and both supported him as Secretary of Defense. The fact that President Obama did not express a visceral commitment comes as no surprise. What is more important than the “Heart” issue is that Obama insured our troops had the means to do the job.

As my readers can attest I am not a great fan of President Obama regarding domestic matters, but I am gratified that Mr. Gates has many good things to say about the President when it comes to the military and foreign affairs. He also speaks highly of Hillary Clinton and Susan Rice. Since neither ranks high on my hit parade, it is noteworthy to learn that they have some redeeming qualities in the Defense Secretary’s opinion.

It is impossible to read his memoire without concluding that Bob Gates is one of the premiere strategic thinkers of our age and if anyone should know what went on behind the scenes of what we saw in the news, he is certainly a credible source.

The book is full of examples that explain the back-story of the national policy decisions that were made on his watch. How often do we see events reported in the news and scratch our heads, wondering what prompted this?” It’s a shame his watch ended before the Benghazi incident and the recent fruitless negotiations with Iran. I would certainly like to know what he has to say about these.