Obama names Shinseki as choice for VA chief
President-elect Barack Obama announced today that retired Army Gen. Eric Shinseki is his pick to be secretary of Veterans Affairs. The nation needs "a 21st Century" Department of Veterans Affairs "that will better serve all who have answered our nation's call," he said at a news conference in Chicago. full story
Shinseki spoke his mind before Iraq was invaded about the need for a lot more troops. He was right.
After reading this part, I think he would be a good head for the VA. It shows how much he does care.
“I do not want to criticize while my soldiers are still bleeding and dying in Iraq.”
I'd still like to see Cleland on the job but Shinseki could end up being a wonderful choice.
UPDATE 10:00 p.m.
General Critical of Iraq War Is Pick for VA Chief
New York Times - United States
By JACKIE CALMES
Published: December 6, 2008
CHICAGO — President-elect Barack Obama has chosen retired Gen. Eric K. Shinseki to be secretary of the Veterans Affairs Department, elevating the former Army chief of staff, who was vilified by the Bush administration on the eve of the Iraq war for his warning that far more troops would be needed than the Pentagon had committed.
In his choice of General Shinseki, which Mr. Obama will announce here on Sunday, the president-elect would bring to his cabinet someone who symbolizes the break Mr. Obama seeks with the Bush era on national security. The selection was confirmed by two Democratic officials.
General Shinseki, testifying before Congress in February 2003, a month before the United States invaded Iraq and toppled Saddam Hussein’s regime, said “several hundred thousand soldiers” would be needed to stabilize Iraq after an invasion. In words that came to be vindicated by events, the general anticipated “ethnic tensions that could lead to other problems,” adding, “and so it takes a significant ground force presence to maintain a safe and secure environment.”
The testimony angered Donald H. Rumsfeld, the defense secretary at the time, whose war plans called for far fewer troops. Mr. Rumsfeld’s deputy, Paul D. Wolfowitz, publicly rebuked General Shinseki’s comments as “wildly off the mark,” in part because Iraqis would welcome the Americans as liberators.
With the subsequent years in which Americans battled ethnic insurgents, and after President Bush agreed in January 2007 to a “surge” strategy of more troops, General Shinseki was effectively vindicated, and military officials, as well as activists and politicians, publicly saluted him. By then, however, General Shinseki had been marginalized on the Joint Chiefs of Staff and quietly retired from the Army.
When asked about General Shinseki’s early troop estimates in an interview to be broadcast Sunday on “Meet the Press” on NBC, Mr. Obama said, “He was right.”
At the same time, General Shinseki drew criticism for not having pressed more aggressively for more troops before the war. In an interview in Newsweek in early 2007, he said of the critiques, with characteristic brevity: “Probably that’s fair. Not my style.” In the past, he would say to his associates, “I do not want to criticize while my soldiers are still bleeding and dying in Iraq.”
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Dem officials: Shinseki to be named VA secretary
By HOPE YEN
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama has chosen retired Gen. Eric K. Shinseki to be the next Veterans Affairs secretary, turning to a former Army chief of staff once vilified by the Bush administration for questioning its Iraq war strategy.
The choice was first reported by The Associated Press.
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linked from RawStory
But we had these other people and Max Cleland would have been a better choice considering the two biggest issues facing the troops with the VA is TBI and PTSD. Cleland understands PTSD, because he has it but above all he also knows what it's like to be misdiagnosed. He was treated for depression instead of PTSD.
Obama to Announce Pick for Veterans Affairs Tomorrow
Obama to Announce Pick for Veterans Affairs Tomorrow (Update1)
By Julianna Goldman
Dec. 6 (Bloomberg) -- President-elect Barack Obama will announce his choice to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs tomorrow at a news conference in Chicago, according to a Democratic aide.
Obama’s pick will join him at the press conference scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. Chicago time, to commemorate the 67th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, according to the aide, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Possible choices to lead the department include Tammy Duckworth, an Iraq War veteran who lost a 2006 bid for Congress and serves as director of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs; former U.S. Senator Max Cleland of Georgia, a disabled Vietnam veteran who led veterans affairs under President Jimmy Carter; Republican Senator Chuck Hagel of Nebraska; and Maryland Lieutenant Governor Anthony Brown, an Iraq War Veteran.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Japanese planes attacked the U.S. Naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, leaving more than 2,400 servicemen dead and destroying most of the U.S. Pacific Fleet. The surprise strike drew the U.S. into World War II.
Obama has moved quickly to fill out his Cabinet. He’s named New York Federal Reserve President Timothy Geithner as Treasury secretary, New York senator Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State and New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson as Commerce secretary. Defense Secretary Robert Gates will remain at the Pentagon, and Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano will head Homeland Security. Obama named former Justice Department official Eric Holder as attorney general.
Former South Dakota Senator Tom Daschle has accepted Obama’s offer to become Health and Human Services secretary, though the selection hasn’t been formally announced.
Obama said Nov. 26 he’s seeking a combination of “experience with fresh thinking” for his cabinet.
Cabinet secretaries are subject to Senate confirmation, once they are formally nominated, after Obama takes office on Jan. 20. Gates won’t have to undergo reconfirmation as defense chief.
To contact the reporter on this story: Julianna Goldman in Chicago at jgoldman6@bloomberg.net
Last Updated: December 6, 2008 14:56 EST
Paul Sullivan
Executive Director
Veterans for Common Sense
So which is it?
Uh Cleland a better choice? Shinseki was a command officer, a careerist in the Army, and one who was also wounded. He understands bureaucracy and the military, not to mention the need to keep the men happy. As an added bonus he is also an Asian-American.
ReplyDeleteI don't think Shinseki is a bad choice. I just think that with the mess the VA has been in under terrible leadership, it needs someone that knows how it is supposed to work. Cleland already did that. Shinseki is bright and could do very well too. He's just not my top pick, but the choice belongs to Obama.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great blog, and I'd like to Post a Comment
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Mberenis, thank you.
ReplyDeleteIt is good news because Obama served on the Veteran's Affairs Committee. He was told that he could have gone onto other committees, but his heart was tugged by the veterans. Considering we have less than 10% of the general population as veterans, it was not considered a hot committee to go on. He takes veterans very seriously as well as the troops but the key is that he thinks they should be supported just as much after war as we do during it.