In the Coming Gulf War, President Bush Must Follow the Golden Rules

* The will to win. This is the most important quality required of a statesman waging war. It embraces all the other martial virtues, including courage. It is what John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson conspicuously lacked i

Mr. Bush must ask himself now, before it is too late: Have I the will to go forward in Iraq, without allies if need be, whatever the cost, however great the difficulties, until I have secured my objective--to replace Saddam Hussein's regime with a democratic, peaceful one? If the answer is yes, and I think it is,

* Unanimity in leadership. Sometime soon, before the countdown begins, Mr. Bush must provide his Cabinet with a clear statement of his intentions and invite them to express their assent, recording it as a formal, ultimately

* Distinctions of role. Having formulated a clear political objective for the war, Mr. Bush, as President and Commander-in-Chief, must translate it into equally clear, unambiguous and specific orders for the military, and b

Having given the orders and ensured that the military has all it can reasonably demand for carrying those orders out--a vital proviso--Mr. Bush must then trust his generals to get on with it. He must at all times keep an absolute

By contrast Prime Minister Anthony Eden, during his disastrous Suez war of 1956, constantly issued what were, in effect, military orders to his commanders--deciding, for instance, the weight of the bombs to be dropped on the Egypt

If the President has a right to demand that the military follow his orders to secure objectives, his generals, in return, have an equal right to devise the means, according to their professional skills. The President may query and

* Resolution and confidence. President Bush must never allow himself to be deflected from his clear objective. Resolution springs from an absolute conviction of the righteousness of the cause. The object lesson for all time Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War. The twin goals of preserving the Union and making good its humanitarian aims never left the forefront of Lincoln's mind during a long, exceptionally bloody, frustrating and demoralizing war. I advise Mr. Bush to refamiliarize himself with Lincoln's travails and the staunch way in which he overcame them.

So there we are. Willpower, unanimity, distinctions of role, resolution and confidence--these are the golden rules of war. I hope Britain, which has an important military contribution to make, fully backs President Bush. Though the U.S. has many passive allies providing bases and airspace, the President must not be afraid to go on alone. He has power enough.

In fact I suspect the campaign will prove much easier than most people think. Saddam may be on the point of securing some odiously powerful weapons, but his conventional forces are much weaker than at the time of the Gulf war, whi

Then the opponents of the war will fall silent, allies will spring to attention and the world will be at Mr. Bush's feet. Speed and success are everything, not least in the Arab world. But those golden rules must be kept.

In the Coming Gulf War,
President Bush Must Follow the Golden Rules

As President Bush is about to embark on Gulf War II, it is well to remind him of the golden rules of military action. They are fourfold, and I advise him to place a summary of them in a prominent position on his desk.

• The will to win. This is the most important quality required of a statesman waging war. It embraces all the other martial virtues, including courage. It is what John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson conspicuously lacked in their on-again, off-again war in Vietnam. It is what Winston Churchill in 1940 and Margaret Thatcher in the Falklands War conspicuously possessed.

Mr. Bush must ask himself now, before it is too late: Have I the will to go forward in Iraq, without allies if need be, whatever the cost, however great the difficulties, until I have secured my objective--to replace Saddam Hussein's regime with a democratic, peaceful one? If the answer is yes, and I think it is, we need have no fear.

• Unanimity in leadership. Sometime soon, before the countdown begins, Mr. Bush must provide his Cabinet with a clear statement of his intentions and invite them to express their assent, recording it as a formal, ultimately unanimous, vote. I believe this will be secured, and it should be extended to all senior members of the Administration. The President must say, in effect: "If you disagree, make your feelings plain now and take your leave. The issue is too serious, in itself and for the future of the civilized world, to permit bickering and information leaks once the action begins. Pledge yourselves now and, thereafter, give my leadership the backing it will surely need."

• Distinctions of role. Having formulated a clear political objective for the war, Mr. Bush, as President and Commander-in-Chief, must translate it into equally clear, unambiguous and specific orders for the military, and bid his commanders to carry out those orders until their goals are attained. This is something that was never done in Vietnam; the commanders, let alone the troops, never knew what their final objectives were.

Having given the orders and ensured that the military has all it can reasonably demand for carrying those orders out--a vital proviso--Mr. Bush must then trust his generals to get on with it. He must at all times keep an absolute distinction between political ends and military means. This is what Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher did throughout the Falklands campaign, even during its darkest moments. Though itching to interfere, she never did so, and the military remained in absolute control of strategy and tactics.

By contrast Prime Minister Anthony Eden, during his disastrous Suez war of 1956, constantly issued what were, in effect, military orders to his commanders--deciding, for instance, the weight of the bombs to be dropped on the Egyptians. President Lyndon Johnson was even worse while the war in Vietnam was raging. Not only did he make himself supremo of the air war, deciding weaponry and targets, but his "bombing pauses," determined entirely for political reasons, made nonsense of any consistent strategy or tactics--and were cunningly exploited by the enemy. In consequence, his generals became demoralized and the men apathetic.

If the President has a right to demand that the military follow his orders to secure objectives, his generals, in return, have an equal right to devise the means, according to their professional skills. The President may query and even argue with their plans, but in the end he must accept them, as Churchill, albeit reluctantly, always did during World War II.

• Resolution and confidence. President Bush must never allow himself to be deflected from his clear objective. Resolution springs from an absolute conviction of the righteousness of the cause. The object lesson for all time for this is provided by Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War. The twin goals of preserving the Union and making good its humanitarian aims never left the forefront of Lincoln's mind during a long, exceptionally bloody, frustrating and demoralizing war. I advise Mr. Bush to refamiliarize himself with Lincoln's travails and the staunch way in which he overcame them.

So there we are. Willpower, unanimity, distinctions of role, resolution and confidence--these are the golden rules of war. I hope Britain, which has an important military contribution to make, fully backs President Bush. Though the U.S. has many passive allies providing bases and airspace, the President must not be afraid to go on alone. He has power enough.

In fact I suspect the campaign will prove much easier than most people think. Saddam may be on the point of securing some odiously powerful weapons, but his conventional forces are much weaker than at the time of the Gulf war, while America's are considerably stronger. If the campaign begins around Oct. 20, it should be over before the midterm elections.

Then the opponents of the war will fall silent, allies will spring to attention and the world will be at Mr. Bush's feet. Speed and success are everything, not least in the Arab world. But those golden rules must be kept.

Paul Johnson, eminent British historian and author.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.