View Full Version : "SECDEF Esper, you're Fired."
Badger52
11-09-2020, 15:03
As reported here (https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2020/11/09/terminated-president-trump-fires-defense-secretary-mark-esper-long-expected-move/), Mark Esper has been terminated.
Chris Miller, currently Director NCTC is to be Acting SECDEF.
President Donald Trump fired Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Monday, in a long-anticipated move.
Trump announced the firing via Twitter. He also announced he was putting Christopher C. Miller, the director of the National Counterterrorism Center, as acting secretary of defense “effective immediately.”
…Chris will do a GREAT job! Mark Esper has been terminated. I would like to thank him for his service.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 9, 2020
The relationship between Trump and Esper soured quickly after Esper preempted the president by declaring he did not support using active-duty forces to restore peace during a summer of violent riots.
Trump had not called for using troops, but had warned he might if the violence continued. However, Esper’s preemptive declaration made it more difficult for the president to use the threat of deployment of troops as a deterrent to rioters.
Esper’s statement had come after he received criticism from the left for walking with the president to St. John’s Church in Lafayette Park across from the White House.
The left claimed that Esper and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley had drawn the military into politics by appearing with the president, despite Esper being a political appointee who serves at the behest of the president to carry out the president’s policies.
Esper — claiming to want to keep the military out of politics — had seldom, if ever, outwardly voiced support for the president during his tenure.
Esper, a former defense lobbyist, became the Army secretary when President Donald Trump first took office. He was a former classmate of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo at West Point.
Wager: One of the first questions to Miller will be to ascertain how he feels about using the military and invoking the Insurrection Act.
Then it will be JADE HELM x TAILWIND. I can't wait.
:munchin
still cant believe he didnt shit can the heads of the FBI and CIA as well
seditious cock suckers
tom kelly
11-09-2020, 15:54
These fiefdom's need to be reined in by appointing an Administrative Assistant to the heads of the agency. The heads of the FBI & CIA would be subservient to the wishes of the Admins.
Should have been fired before he was hired. The same with Wray.
Mmm. replacement is some guy named Miller who served in some weird group called "Special Forces"; they wear strange hats, go to strange places, eat snakes I understand. Study things like "Foreign Internal Defense." Maybe change that to "Internal Defense at Home." :munchin
Because of the Miller appointment, coup plotter Andrew Weissman is on record stating that Trump is planning a military coup....
Mr.Miller has quite the pedigree, and looks like a good choice in the current climate within the US.
https://www.defense.gov/Our-Story/Biographies/Biography/Article/2111192/christopher-c-miller/
The Reaper
11-09-2020, 21:48
The active military should not be put in a position to fight with American civilians.
TR
Combat Diver
11-10-2020, 05:09
These fiefdom's need to be reined in by appointing an Administrative Assistant to the heads of the agency. The heads of the FBI & CIA would be subservient to the wishes of the Admins.
Don't forget to add the BATFE to the list.
CD
Badger52
11-10-2020, 06:16
The active military should not be put in a position to fight with American civilians.
TRHappen to agree with this. I suspect Esper was canned for a history of backbiting non-support to his CinC, rather than the one issue over making places like Portland peaceful again. Under what the media reports there were probably rounds lobbed back & forth from E-ring to the West Wing.
"The active military should not be put in a position to fight with American civilians."
They won't be; they'll be tasked with routing out the subversive commies, fascists, and BLM Marxists infiltrating and attempting to overthrow our government.
My mixed emotions all stem from that pesky little part about "all enemies, foreign AND domestic" in that oath they keep making me swear...
Who gets to declare the definition of "domestic enemy"
...people like Pelosi her ilk certainly seem to read from a different dictionary than I do
Trapper John
11-10-2020, 08:46
still cant believe he didnt shit can the heads of the FBI and CIA as well
seditious cock suckers
Don't hold back, tell us how ya really feel!:D
:lifter
Space Cadet
11-10-2020, 09:13
The active military should not be put in a position to fight with American civilians.
TR
+1
Mr.Miller has quite the pedigree,
LtC Chris Miller(ret), 5th SFG(A), Horse Soldier :lifter
Ret10Echo
11-10-2020, 12:19
Great to see an SF soldier in that position....
The timing does not present him with an opportunity to demonstrate the skillset he brings. As usual, SF takes on a shit mission with a less than positive expected outcome.
DOL
Peregrino
11-10-2020, 13:59
Great to see an SF soldier in that position....
The timing does not present him with an opportunity to demonstrate the skillset he brings. As usual, SF takes on a shit mission with a less than positive expected outcome.
DOL
As usual, SF gets handed a shit mission with a less than positive expected outcome that nobody else wants to touch for fear of ruining their career (political repercussions). Send Mikey (Chris in this case); he's expendable.
There - fixed it for you.
Sorry - was channeling Box without his satirical humor to leaven the reality.
As usual, SF gets handed a shit mission with a less than positive expected outcome that nobody else wants to touch for fear of ruining their career (political repercussions). Send Mikey (Chris in this case); he's expendable.
There - fixed it for you.
Sorry - was channeling Box without his satirical humor to leaven the reality.
Miller’s a good dude - he’s my former BN CDR from a few days ago. Probably not going to be there long.... but his head is in the right spot.
Ret10Echo
11-10-2020, 14:27
As usual, SF gets handed a shit mission with a less than positive expected outcome that nobody else wants to touch for fear of ruining their career (political repercussions). Send Mikey (Chris in this case); he's expendable.
There - fixed it for you.
Sorry - was channeling Box without his satirical humor to leaven the reality.
Greatly appreciate your channeling of Box to pull out the words I left unstated :D
tom kelly
11-10-2020, 14:38
Great to see an SF soldier in that position....
The timing does not present him with an opportunity to demonstrate the skillset he brings. As usual, SF takes on a shit mission with a less than positive expected outcome.
DOL
Very impressive resume, HOWEVER, did not see The SFQC noted, was this an oversight ????
stridertherange
11-11-2020, 12:55
Great to see an SF soldier in that position....
The timing does not present him with an opportunity to demonstrate the skillset he brings. As usual, SF takes on a shit mission with a less than positive expected outcome.
DOL
At this point POTUS ought to just fire the lot and surround himself with SF on his staff...
I’m really looking forward to SECDEF’s CoS (Kash Patel) results at the Pentagon. He did great things on Rep Nines’ staff WRT the Russia collusion BS.
At this point POTUS ought to just fire the lot and surround himself with SF on his staff...
I disagree.
He needs to stop the practice of assuming that flag officers are automatically loyal to presidential policy. He needs to surround himself with solid conservative thinkers.
Many of his problems will eventually be found to have root in his putting so many general officers in positions of power in his administration.
Generals do a good job of managing troops and campaigns. They suck at managing policy. They suck even worse at pretending to be unbiased while managing policy - and don't forget what I keep telling people about the physics of military leadership...
A General Officer at war will remain at war until acted on by an external force.
There are some places that a retired GO just doesn't belong and one of those places is the helm of the DoD. a former MAJ/LTC/COL/PFC/SGT that left service and learned something else - then entered the realm of politics - so be it.
General officers gonna Gen'ral let them do what they are good at, just keep them away from politics.
...and to entertain the possibility: I can't think of any GOOD SF guys that would sully themselves in professional partisan politics - a few good names might change my mind. I ABSOLUTELY LOVE blind partisan politics - but them I wasn't all that good of an SF guy either.
Badger52
11-14-2020, 13:45
Acting SECDEF Miller's first memo to troops (https://media.defense.gov/2020/Nov/14/2002535407/-1/-1/0/INITIAL-MESSAGE-TO-THE-DEPARTMENT.PDF?source=GovDelivery) Read at the link or the essential grist is below for you to chew on.
MEMORANDUM FOR ALL DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE EMPLOYEES
SUBJECT: Initial Message to the Department
Apart from leading fighting men and women in combat in Afghanistan and Iraq earlier in my career, serving as your Acting Secretary of Defense is the greatest privilege of my professional life.
Our mission at the Department of Defense has been - and remains - serving the people of the United States with honor and integrity so that they may continue to enjoy the blessings of freedom and liberty. To do this, we must take care of each other, focus on outcomes. and remain the most dynamic and innovative organization and fighting force in the world.
With a foundation built upon respect, professionalism, competence, and honesty, we will continue to transform our Department to compete in a new strategic environment. This requires changes in organizations, skills, and decision-making processes. But we know how to do this. We have done it before - and no one on earth does it better. We will continue to aggressively challenge established paradigms, maintain and modify those that have value. and courageously discard those that have run their course.
Today, with enormous gratitude to those who came before us. we face the future with confidence and humility. We are the inheritors of the genius of our founders and generations of successors who created an organization ruthlessly committed to excellence, non-partisanship. and servant leadership. This motivates me enormously and allows me to face the daily challenges of our chosen calling.
The opportunity to again work with all of you and serve as your leader is something that could only happen in America. After all, I still see myself as a kid from Iowa who enlisted to serve his Nation, be challenged, and do something that matters - which is what each of you do every day. I am a better person thanks to the opportunities that the Army and the Department of Defense provided me, and my story, while not distinctive, is emblematic of the boundless opportunities that are available in this ongoing experiment of democracy. To each of you, I offer my utmost gratitude and respect for your willingness to sacrifice so much to our vital mission.
My thoughts. hopes, dreams, and prayers are with all of you and your loved ones as we resolutely lean into the future and update our processes and structures to guarantee that our Armed Forces remain preeminent and the beacon of justice and goodness in the world.
As we prepare for the future. we remain committed to finishing the war that Al Qaida brought to our shores in 2001. This war isn't over. We are on the verge of defeating Al Qaida and its associates, but we must avoid our past strategic error of failing to see the fight through to the finish. Indeed, this fight has been long, our sacrifices have been enormous. and many are weary of war -I'm one of them - but this is the critical phase in which we transition our efforts from a leadership to supporting role. We are not a people of perpetual war -it is the antithesis of everything for which we stand and for which our ancestors fought. All wars must end.
Ending wars requires compromise and partnership. We met the challenge; we gave it our all. Now, it's time to come home. As I consider the scarring but ennobling experience many of us have undergone during this war, the words of Abraham Lincoln during his second Inaugural Address bring me strength, perspective, and confidence:
- "With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation' s wounds; to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan -to do all which may achieve and cherish a just, and a lasting peace, among ourselves, and with all nations.'·
- To all of our Soldiers, Sailors. Airmen, Marines, Coast Guardsmen, Space Professionals, and civilians: Continue to be bold. Continue to be courageous. Continue to set the example of selfless service that is the envy of the world and an example for our citizens. Our tasks are not easy. The burden is great. But together we will take our Nation to new heights.
What a magnificent time to be a part of the Department of Defense and the United States Armed Forces. Our Nation needs you, and I'm enormously proud of you. I am humbled and honored to be on your team.
[signed]
Christopher C. Miller
Acting
:munchin
Good.
About time we leave that place and get out of nation building "business."