Free Republic

Defense Secretary Robert Gates is objecting “in the strongest terms” to an Associated Press decision to transmit a photograph showing a mortally wounded 21-year-old Marine in his final moments of life, calling the decision “appalling” and a breach of “common decency.” The AP reported that the Marine’s father had asked – in an interview and in a follow-up phone call — that the image, taken by an embedded photographer, not be published. The AP reported in a story that it decided to make the image public anyway, because it “conveys the grimness of war and the sacrifice of young men...

Reporting from Manila -- Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates acknowledged today that North Korea may be preparing for another long-range missile test but said Pyongyang's intentions were in doubt. Gates offered few details but said "there were some signs" that North Korea was putting a Taepodong 2 missile onto a launch pad.

n his audacious attack on a sitting president last week, Mr Cheney declared that America was less safe from terrorism after Mr Obama's decision to abandon violent interrogation methods and close Guantanamo. But once the cheering had died down on talk radio and cable television, discordant voices emerged from the Right to challenge Mr Cheney's defence of the Bush-era legacy. "Yeah, I disagree with Dick Cheney," said Tom Ridge, who was appointed by the Bush-Cheney administration to set up and run the Department of Homeland Security in the wake of the 2001 terrorist attacks on America. Mr Ridge spoke out...

Cadets graduating from West Point were praised by U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Saturday for having the courage and patriotism to join the military in "a dangerous new century." Gates noted that the 970 members of the U.S. Military Academy's class of 2009 were preparing their West Point applications in late 2004, even as American forces were battling fiercely in Fallujah in Iraq. "You made your decision to serve knowing not only that America was at war, as did every man or woman who joined the military after Sept. 11, but that this war would be bloody and difficult,...

WASHINGTON - US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said Friday that President Barack Obama had asked him to update the plans for the use of military force against Iran which were prepared during former President George W. Bush's term. In an interview to NBC television's Today show, the American defense secretary explained that "presidents always ask their military to have a range of contingency plans available to them. And all I would say is that, as a result of our dialogue with the president, we have refreshed our plans and all options are on the table."

CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan, May 7, 2009 – The question-and-answer session Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates opened here today with newly deployed Marines started with a pregnant pause, but quickly moved into a lively give-and-take about everything from deployment lengths to current and possible future military operations. The group, mostly members of the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade, Marine Wing Support Squadron 37 and Marine Combat Logistics Battalion 3, took advantage of the opportunity to ask the defense secretary about issues on their minds. Asked about security along the Pakistan-Afghan border, Gates credited the Pakistani government with cracking down on Taliban forces...

It’s too late. And probably has been for a long time. Gates told a Senate panel that a military option would only delay Iran’s nuclear ambitions and drive the program further underground, making it more difficult to monitor, he said. He said the better option would be for the United States and its allies to convince Iran that building a nuclear program would start an arms race that would leave the country less secure. “Their security interests are actually badly served by trying to have nuclear weapons,” Gates said. “They will start a nuclear arms race in the Middle East...

The United States can do nothing to stop North Korea from breaking international law in the next 10 days by firing a missile that is unlikely to be shot down by the U.S. or its allies, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Sunday. Appearing on "FOX News Sunday," Gates said North Korea "probably will" fire the missile, prompting host Chris Wallace to ask: "And there's nothing we can do about it?" "No," Gates answered, adding, "I would say we're not prepared to do anything about it."

2 hours ago WASHINGTON (AP) — Don't expect any change soon to the "don't ask, don't tell" policy about gays in the military. Defense Secretary Robert Gates says both he and President Barack Obama have "a lot on our plates right now." As Gates puts it, "let's push that one down the road a little bit." The White House has said Obama has begun consulting with Gates and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on how to lift the ban. Gates says that dialogue has not really progressed very far at this point in the administration. The Pentagon...

As the Bush administration was drawing to a close, Robert M. Gates, whose two years as defense secretary had been devoted to wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, felt compelled to warn his successor of a crisis closer to home.

President Barack Obama is at odds with Defense Secretary Robert Gates and others in the military over America’s need for a new generation of nuclear warheads. While serving as President George W. Bush’s defense secretary, Gates repeatedly spoke in favor of the Reliable Replacement Warhead (RRW) program because the country’s weapons, mostly produced in the 1970s and 1980s, are aging and their effectiveness may be in the question, Time magazine reports. “Even though the days of hair-trigger superpower confrontation are over, as long as other nations possess the bomb and the means to deliver it, the United States must maintain...

WASHINGTON (AFP) – US Defense Secretary Robert Gates will sit out Barack Obama's inauguration at an undisclosed location as the "designated successor" in the event of a catastrophe, the White House announced Monday. While the eyes of the world are glued Tuesday to Obama's historic swearing-in, attended by outgoing US President George W. Bush and both outgoing and incoming senior aides, Gates will stay away, said spokeswoman Dana Perino. "In order to ensure continuity of government, Defense Secretary Robert Gates has been designated by the outgoing administration, with the concurrence of the incoming administration, to serve as the designated successor...

US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has told US troops in Iraq that their mission there is in its "endgame".

While the rhetoric about the nature of America’s struggle against Islamic militancy will undoubtedly change after January 20, the need to continue killing, imprisoning, and de-radicalizing such extremists will endure, as the latest attack in the Indian city of Mumbai so tragically attests.

Citizen Soldiers May Need More Training On Homeland Operations, Defense Secretary Says Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Monday ordered his top department leaders to conduct a broad review to determine whether the military, National Guard and Reserve can adequately deal with domestic disasters and whether they have the training and equipment to defend the homeland. The 41-page memo signaled an acknowledgment that the military must better recognize the critical role of the National Guard and Reserves in homeland defense, but stopped short of requiring many specific policy changes. His memo comes in the wake of a stinging 400-page independent commission...

November 26, 2008, 6:00 a.m. Gates Is InThere are limits to change. An NRO Symposium Robert Gates will reportedly stay on at the Pentagon as defense secretary at the start of the Obama administration. Defense experts react. PETER BROOKESKeeping Secretary Gates on is a good idea. He’s been a solid performer, including guiding the incredible turn-around of the situation in Iraq. Plus, he seems to have the trust and confidence of both sides of the aisle in Congress — a definite bonus. On the practical side, with (at least) two wars ongoing, it makes bureaucratic sense for Obama’s ultimate...

Gates agrees to stay on under Obama By: Mike Allen November 25, 2008 04:52 PM EST Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates has agreed to stay on under President-elect Obama, according to officials in both parties. Obama plans to announce a national-security team early next week that includes Gates at the Pentagon and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) as secretary of State, officials said. Retired Marine Gen. James L. Jones, former Marine commandant and commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Europe, will be named national security adviser, the officials said. The national security adviser heads the National Security Council, which...

President-elect Barack Obama will keep Defense Secretary Robert Gates in that job for at least a year, according to an official familiar the two men's discussions. Obama is expected to announce the selection of Gates and other members of a national security brain trust next week. Gates has served as President George W. Bush's defense chief for two years. Gates, a moderate with long-standing ties to Republican administrations and the Bush family, would fulfill an Obama pledge to include a Republican in his Cabinet. Retaining Gates provides stability for a stretched military fighting two wars during the turbulent changeover in...

2. change... not so much :( Printer Friendly | Permalink | Reply | Top amitta (35 posts) Click to send private message to this author Click to view this author's profile Click to add this author to your buddy list Click to add this author to your Ignore list Tue Nov-25-08 05:09 PM Response to Original message 3. so Obama thinks Dems are weak on defense disgusting. Printer Friendly | Permalink | Reply | Top gcomeau Donating Member (1000+ posts) Journal Click to send private message to this author Click to view this author's profile Click to add this author...

Sources tell ABC News that Defense Secretary Robert Gates will be staying on in the top Pentagon job, for at least the first year of the Obama administration. "It is a done deal," a source close to the process tells ABC News. Gates, while a registered independent, has served numerous Republican administrations. President George W. Bush nominated Gates to replace the Donald Rumsfeld after the 2006 midterm elections, when the war in Iraq was spiraling out of control. The former Eagle Scout is expected to be rolled out immediately after the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend as part of a larger national...