Free Republic

The rush by congressional Democrats to overturn "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT) - despite the opposition of the Army, Air Force and Marine Corps service chiefs - threatens its advocates with a political backlash from a public that is just beginning to focus on this issue.Marine Commandant Gen. James Amos, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz and Army Chief of Staff Gen. George Casey all testified in a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee that overturning DADT has strong potential to disrupt military readiness and effectiveness and will divert leadership attention away from focusing on preparing...

Sen. John McCain of Arizona led a group of skeptical Republicans questioning a new Pentagon report that supports the end of the "don't ask, don't tell" policy regarding gays serving in the military. Lawmakers got their first opportunity Thursday to question top Pentagon officials on Capitol Hill about the findings of a much-anticipated study released Tuesday, focusing largely on the possible timeline for such a change and its potential impact on military operations, especially on front-line combat units. But Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen defended the recommendation and urged Congress to...

Military members who have a problem with a change in policy to allow gays to serve openly may find themselves looking for a new job, Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, warned Thursday.

    WASHINGTON — Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini and Hideki Tojo tried and failed. Mao Zedong, Nikita Khrushchev and Ho Chi Minh couldn't do it. But commander in chief Barack Obama may well succeed where others could not. If he has his way, he will demolish the finest force for good in the history of mankind — the U.S. armed forces. And he wants to make it all happen before the end of the year.On Nov. 30, Defense Secretary Robert Gates released the much-leaked "Report of the Comprehensive Review of the Issues Associated with a Repeal of 'Don't Ask,...

We’ve listened for just about nine years, two months and fourteen days to upper echelon political officials (including George W. Bush) and high-ranking members of the armed forces feed us milk-toast and pabulum about Islam and the Koran. The state of denial in the Pentagon about the true nature of codified Muslim doctrine is not getting better – it’s getting much worse. Today Diana West of the Washington Examiner covers an astounding speech given last weekend by Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. If anything is illustrative of the delusions under which our troops are fighting...

NOTE The following text is a quote: Mullen: U.S. Military Needs More Diversity By Karen Parrish American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, Oct. 18, 2010 – The armed services “can’t go fast enough” to increase diversity, Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a group of senior military leaders here yesterday. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, addresses the Air Force Diversity Senior Leader Working Group at the Doubletree Hotel in Crystal City, Va. on Oct. 17, 2010. DOD photo by Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Chad J. McNeeley (Click photo...

NOTE The following text is a quote: Mullen: Military Has ‘Strategic Imperative’ to Save Resources By Lisa Daniel American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, Oct. 13, 2010 – The military has a “strategic imperative” to lead the nation in environmental conservation, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said here today. “We in the Defense Department have a role to play here -- not solely because we should be good stewards of the environment and our scarce resources, but also because there is a strategic imperative for us to reduce risk, improve efficiencies, and preserve our freedom of action whenever...

The top U.S. military official said on Wednesday that he worried that Iraq's political paralysis was threatening its recent security gains, highlighting Washington's growing fears that Iraq's inability to form a new government could trigger a new outbreak of violence. "I'm extremely concerned about their inability to stand up this government," Adm. Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters at a breakfast sponsored by The Christian Science Monitor. "The politics there are from my perspective too slow ... and the longer that lasts, the more I and others worry about what does the future hold."...

WASHINGTON, July 8, 2010 – Noting the importance of getting the opinions of those who would be most affected by a possible repeal of the so-called “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law that bans gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates today urged servicemembers to provide their input. About 400,000 servicemembers are receiving an e-mail survey seeking their opinions, and the department has an online inbox at https://dadt.csd.disa.mil/ for additional feedback from common access card holders. “I think it is very important for us to understand from our men and women in uniform the...

WASHINGTON, June 29, 2010 – The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said yesterday that he returned from Afghanistan this week reassured that U.S. and NATO forces remain on track there, but also concerned about the synergy among terrorist groups in the region. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen made the comments yesterday as part of an interview with David Sanger, New York Times chief Washington correspondent, at the inaugural Aspen Security Forum, part of the Aspen Institute, in Colorado. Mullen said his trip to Afghanistan, Pakistan and Israel was scheduled before the fallout from a magazine article on Army Gen....

WASHINGTON, June 16, 2010 – Kandahar, the spiritual home of the Taliban, is the key to success in Afghanistan and the U.S. military is working with Afghan forces to turn the tide against the insurgents, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff told the defense subcommittee of the Senate Appropriations Committee today. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen and Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates testified on the fiscal 2011 Defense Budget request. Mullen told the senators that Kandahar, the second-largest city in Afghanistan, is the birthplace of the Taliban. Taliban chieftain Mullah Omar ruled Afghanistan from a palace in Kandahar. Today,...

As early as this week, the United States Senate may turn to the annual legislation known as "The National Defense Authorization Act" (NDAA) that is supposed to provide the Pentagon what it needs to defend our nation. Unfortunately, thanks to an amendment added in the Senate Armed Services Committee that would impose the radical homosexual agenda on the U.S. military, a more appropriate title for this bill would be "The Bring Back the Draft Act." Mind you, none of the bill's sponsors would want it given such a descriptor. Nor are they likely to own up to the reality that...

Note: The following text is a quote: Mullen Stresses Precision, Innovation to Graduates By Jim Garamone American Forces Press Service FORT LESLEY J. MCNAIR, Washington, D.C., June 10, 2010 – The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff today told graduates of the National Defense University here that their careers will be dominated by their understanding of the precise application of military force and national power. NDU’s National War College and the Industrial College of the Armed Forces graduated 603 people from the armed services, civilian agencies and many foreign countries. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and King Abdullah of...

The debate over gays in the military has driven an extraordinary public wedge between the nation's highest-ranking military officer and the four service chiefs who collectively make up the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Adm. Mike Mullen, Joint Chiefs chairman, in February first broke with the chiefs of the Navy, Air Force, Army and Marine Corps by endorsing President Obama's campaign pledge to end the military's ban on open homosexuals. The gap widened last week. Adm. Mullen approved a White House deal for Congress to go ahead with a vote on repeal of the law barring openly gay members from the...

NOTE The following text is a quote: ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ Review Process Vital, Mullen Says By Gerry J. Gilmore American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, May 30, 2010 – It’s of vital importance that the Pentagon gain input from servicemembers and military families on their views about the repeal of the so-called “don’t ask, don’t tell” law, the top U.S. military officer said today. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, discussed the proposed repeal of the law, upcoming operations in Afghanistan and the military's support role in the wake of the oil spill in the...

Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.) said Sunday that Congress should have waited until the Defense Department completed its troop survey before moving forward with legislation to repeal the "Don't ask, don't tell" ban on gays serving openly in the military. "I would've preferred that the legislation was not brought forward until we were done with review," Mullen told Candy Crowley this morning on CNN's "State of the Union." "I have said I think it is important to get through this review," said Mullen, who supports ending the ban. "It's really...

WASHINGTON – The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is predicting that it'll be clear by year's end whether a NATO-led counterinsurgency effort in the Afghan Taliban stronghold of Kandahar is successful. Adm. Mike Mullen says the Kandahar campaign, which is planned to go forward next month, is vital to turning around the war. He says the southern Afghanistan city is as important to the overall war effort as Baghdad was to the U.S. troop increase in Iraq in 2007.

Army General Admonished for Advocating for Gay Ban By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Published: March 25, 2010 WASHINGTON (AP) -- The military's top uniformed officer has publicly admonished a three-star Army general for urging troops to speak out against allowing gays to serve openly. Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Thursday that Lt. Gen. Benjamin Mixon, who heads Army forces for U.S. Pacific Command, was wrong to call on troops and their families to fight a repeal of the military's ''don't ask, don't tell'' policy. Mullen said if uniformed officers disagree with President Barack Obama's call...

Adm. Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, outlined a new U.S. approach to war in a series of speeches this week that replaces overwhelming firepower with more restrained use of force to safeguard civilian lives. The speeches, delivered at Kansas State University and the Army's Fort Leavenworth, amount to a formal effort on the part of the chairman to codify how a decade of combat is changing the military's understanding of its role in battle and, more broadly, its place in U.S. foreign policy

Navy Adm. Michael Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was nearing the end of a 25-minute question-and-answer session with troops serving here when he raised a topic of his own: "No one's asked me about 'don't ask, don't tell,' " he said. As it turned out, none of the two dozen or so men or women who met with Mullen at Marine House in the Jordanian capital Tuesday had any questions on the 17-year-old policy that bars gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military - or Mullen's public advocacy of its repeal. Air Force Chief...