8th General Calls For Rumsfeld’s Resignation

[beltman713]

http://thinkprogress.org/2006/04/24/eighth-general/

8th General Calls For Rumsfeld’s Resignation

Fox News is reporting an 8th general has called for Rumsfeld’s resignation. Ret. Marine General Paul Van Riper (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Van_Riper) said he constantly talks with many active duty and retired senior officers who share his feelings that Secretary Rumsfeld has not fought the Iraq war competently. He told Fox that Rumsfeld has run the Pentagon through intimidation and that a change in leadership is needed:

If this leader is not capable of doing it, now going in excess of five years, has not demonstrated he is, then perhaps it is time to find a new one. If I was the president, I would have relieved him three years ago.

Van Riper follows the calls of Generals Swannack (http://thinkprogress.org/2006/04/13/the-chorus-grows-another-general-calls-for-rumsfelds-resignation/), Newbold (http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1181629,00.html), Eaton (http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/03/19/opinion/edeaton.php), Zinni (http://thinkprogress.org/2006/04/02/zinni-media/), Batiste (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/04/12/AR2006041201114.html), Riggs (http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060414/pl_nm/iraq_usa_dc_6), and Clark (http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06/04/17/143232).

[PhilosophyGenius]

As I posted before, according to a ret. Lt. Col. a shit load of generals are on the pay roll of big corporations so you probably wont see too many active generals retire and speak out.

[Partridge]

As I posted before, according to a ret. Lt. Col. a shit load of generals are on the pay roll of big corporations so you probably wont see too many active generals retire and speak out.

The fact that they are on corporate boards may not be an entirely bad thing (is relation to Iraq/Iran anyway). From an article on counterpunch today:

"The Red, White and Blue Revolt of retired US military generals such as Gregory Newbold and Anthony Zinni carried out in the US mainstream media is fascinating. Their call for Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld's resignation is unprecedented in American wartime history and indicates that the only credible opposition to a civilian leadership gone mad is the military and big corporations. That other party called the Democrats are part of the problem and not the solution. As for President Bush; he dutifully does what he's told by Cheney and Rumsfeld. Take note that the generals are key players in investment companies like Globesecnine (Newbold is co-founder of globesecnine.com) and Anthony Zinni is a board member of Veritas Capital (along with a who's who of former US military leaders). Wall Street helps fund these groups and they may have figured, finally, that Rumsfeld is bad for the military and business (read Jeffrey St. Clair of counterpunch.org for more on that relationship). US intelligence agencies like the CIA are always involved overtly or covertly in the investment/stock trading business, and likely have involvement in these investment firms. They are saying something too: revenge is sweet.

With rebellion in the military and corporate ranks, and the potential for more indictments of Bush Administration's insiders (Karl Rove?) in the Valerie Plame/Joe Wilson CIA case, one has to wonder how this group of people could possibly manage the day-after realities of an Iranian assault."

[PhilosophyGenius]

I disagree. It's a huge conflict of intrest. I mean just look at Vietnam, LBJ was open to pulling out of that war but all the dudes around him were pushing to stay. It's now known that the Military-Industrial Complex were making a shit load of money off the war which of course is why they didn't want it to end. Same thing with Cuba were the Generals were pushing for war so they could make big bucks.

[beltman713]

http://www.rawstory.com/news/2006/Retired_chief_justice_for_third_circuit_0424.html

Retired chief justice for third circuit says Rumsfeld shows 'disregard' for military law

John J. Gibbons, a former Chief Judge of the Third Circuit Court of Appeals appointed by President Richard Nixon and a former officer in the U.S. Navy, joined the chorus of critics attacking Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld Monday, RAW STORY has learned.

"As many distinguished experts have concluded, Donald Rumsfeld has failed in his job as Secretary of Defense," Gibbons said in a statement released to RAW STORY. "I believe our security, our military and our rule of law have all suffered under his leadership.

"The recent disclosure of testimony from the Army Inspector General's 391-page report from December 2005 indicates that Secretary Rumsfeld had far more knowledge of and responsibility for degrading and abusive treatment of my client than he previously acknowledged. The Army's own reports reveal a Defense Secretary showing a disturbing disregard for military law.

"As a retired judge, a lawyer and a veteran, I have the utmost respect for our country's laws and our commitment to civilian control of the military. Those obligations are consistent with an honest public debate about our country's leadership and U.S. policy."

More from his release:

"Judge Gibbons is co-counsel with the Center for Constitutional Rights for Mohammed Al Qhatami, and he argued the case before the Supreme Court that established the rights of Guantánamo detainees to challenge their detention in U.S. court (Rasul v. Bush).

"Gibbons served on the Third Circuit Court of Appeals from 1970 to 1990, including serving as Chief Judge for three years, authoring about 800 published opinions. He formerly taught Constitutional Law and at Seton Hall University Law School.

"He is a Past President of the New Jersey State Bar Association, a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, an Emeritus Director of the American Arbitration Association, a Trustee Emeritus of the Practicing Law Institute, a Trustee Emeritus of Holy Cross College and a Trustee of The Fund for New Jersey. Judge Gibbons served on active duty in the United States Navy from 1943 to1946 and attained the rank of Lieutenant Junior Grade as a Naval Reserve Officer.

"The Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) currently oversees 450 pro-bono attorneys representing the detainees. CCR is a non-profit legal and educational organization dedicated to protecting and advancing the rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Founded in 1966 by attorneys who represented civil rights demonstrators in the South, CCR is committed to the creative use of law as a positive force for social change." They also had a lot of hit songs like, "Born On The Bayou" "Proud Mary" and "Who'll Stop The Rain"