Gen. Batiste: ‘Direct Link Between Haditha’ and Rumsfeld’s ‘Bad Judgment’
Gen. Batiste: ‘Direct Link Between Haditha’ and Rumsfeld’s ‘Bad Judgment’
Today on CNN Late Edition, retired Army General John Batiste said there was a “direct link” between allegations of serious misconduct against Iraqi civilians at Haditha and the “bad judgment” of Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld in 2003 and 2004. Batiste explained that Rumsfeld’s war plan left troops “under-resourced [and] overcommitted.” The result was an “unbelievable” strain on U.S. forces. Watch it:
Transcript:
I, however, see a direct link between Haditha, the national embarrassment of Abu Ghraib, going on four years now of uncontrollable chaos in Iraq, with the bad judgment, poor decisions of our secretary of defense back in late 2003 and 2004.
I question his competency. And I speak for the American people. We deserve accountability.
BLITZER: Well, what specifically did he do wrong, in your opinion, that could have resulted in this kind of alleged atrocity at Haditha or what we all know happened at Abu Ghraib?
BATISTE: Wolf, we went to war with his plan, his plan alone. He all but ignored the U.S. Central Command’s hard work to develop a strategy that would have worked in Iraq, that would have accounted for the hard work to build the peace and stop the insurgency.
We should have deployed with up to 380,000 coalition troops, in addition to the Iraqi security forces, to establish security in that country, to secure the boarders with Iran and Syria, to intimidate the insurgent.
We went in under-resourced, overcommitted. And the strain on the force is unbelievable.
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47 Responses to “Gen. Batiste: ‘Direct Link Between Haditha’ and Rumsfeld’s ‘Bad Judgment’”
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Batiste hit the nail on the head. Haditha is about Rumsfeld's incompetence. Period.
June 4th, 2006 at 6:43 pmI saw this interview.
He nailed Rummy right on the head. And when Wolf asked him who was ultimately responsible, and who should be blamed, he said RUMSFELD.
June 4th, 2006 at 6:44 pmNuremberg, April 1946 Conversation between Gustave Gilbert and Nazi War Criminal Herman Goering:
Later in the conversation, Gilbert recorded Goering's observations that the common people can always be manipulated into supporting and fighting wars by their political leaders:
We got around to the subject of war again and I said that, contrary to his attitude, I did not think that the common people are very thankful for leaders who bring them war and destruction.
"Why, of course, the people don't want war," Goering shrugged. "Why would some poor slob on a farm want to risk his life in a war when the best that he can get out of it is to come back to his farm in one piece. Naturally, the common people don't want war; neither in Russia nor in England nor in America, nor for that matter in Germany. That is understood. But, after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy or a fascist dictatorship or a Parliament or a Communist dictatorship."
"There is one difference," I pointed out. "In a democracy the people have some say in the matter through their elected representatives, and in the United States only Congress can declare wars."
"Oh, that is all well and good, but, voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in any country."
June 4th, 2006 at 6:45 pmAnd there is a direct link to Bush and the lies that got us into Iraq.
June 4th, 2006 at 6:58 pm"I am not bound to win, but I am bound to be true.
I am not bound to succeed, but I am bound to live by the light that I have.
I must stand with anybody that stands right, stand with him while he is right, and part with him when he goes wrong."
Abraham Lincoln
June 4th, 2006 at 7:03 pmOf course, the blame is on Rumsfeld, and I applaud Batiste for saying it so definitively and repeatedly this week. Blame also should fall on the chump in chief - neither his in his position "above it all" nor his ignorance is an excuse. The neocons planted the seeds and began the march. Rumsfeld is totally involved with determining whatever is his mistaken version of his new military. Bush is in charge of the whole damn mess.
June 4th, 2006 at 7:06 pmSo, is Rumsfeld going to accept Bush's letter of resignation?
June 4th, 2006 at 7:06 pm#3 you have also hit the nail on the head.
June 4th, 2006 at 7:07 pmThe only way Rummy gets tossed overboard is if Rove convinces Bush it's in the party's best interests before the November elections. Ain't gonna happen.
June 4th, 2006 at 7:26 pm#3 simon bolivar
June 4th, 2006 at 7:40 pmLooks like the neocons learned well the lessons of history - Nazi Germany.
One should not be deceived by the likes of another liberal hawk such as Batiste. He will complain and criticize the Bush administration about how it had misled this country into war but he will still insist that, no matter how many dead Americans there will be, and thousands more that are returned to this country maimed and crippled and missing an arm and/or a leg, and paralyzed from the waist down, and whose bodies are filled with third degree burns, the United States must stupidly stay the course. No matter how much he may rue the decision that the United States invaded Iraq, he still cannot suppress that military instinct to keep fighting, regardless of the cost of human life, involving Americans, the rest of the coalition forces and Iraqis.
June 4th, 2006 at 7:49 pmWe've been posting number 3 since this all got started. Notice the line, In a democracy the people have some say in the matter through their elected representatives, and in the United States only Congress can declare wars.�
Funny how even that is no longer true, as Bush himself believes he alone has the power to declare war.
June 4th, 2006 at 7:51 pmANVILHEAD,
What is the plan? I thought it was all about happy purple fingered Iraqis? Aren't you happy that the US is spending money to build soccer fields for the Muslims, to paint their religious schools and rebuild their power grids?
Bush is happy that the Iraqis are free, he's not happy that we are killing "ragheads".
So what is the plan? To make the Mulsims happy and free to attack America or to kill them in their beds?
-GSD
June 4th, 2006 at 7:54 pmANVILHEAD SAID
WAR IS NOT EASY, GENERAL
Uhh....I think he knows that.
That's why they made him a General.
June 4th, 2006 at 7:56 pmBushie, Cheney & Co. probably always wanted to be CIA operatives and real soldiers when they were little tykes, but were too stupid to figure out how to do it without getting shot, so now they get to play with other people's lives.
June 4th, 2006 at 7:58 pmTruman in the views 0f many neaocons was a great president. Of course he allowed many of their teachers in the country after WWII. They learned well .
June 4th, 2006 at 7:59 pmAwww, give poor Rummy a break. After all, didn't he say something to the effect that he had nothing to do with intelligence?
And Simon, how quickly you forget 9/11! WMDs! Gays wanting to get married! Women wanting abortions! Mexicans crossing our boarders unabated! umm, what else...oh yeah: 9/11!
Goering was right. Education is the key. That is what makes No Child Left Behind so important to this Administration. The Federal Government will eventually control education as school after school fails to meet impossible standards and is taken over by the State.
June 4th, 2006 at 8:02 pmI think this is a rather dubious argument, and it hurts democrats with legitimate arguments because it makes us all look like we will attack the president with anything, even something he had little to do with. This was about criminal, moron, jughead troops who had the choice of either the armed forces, or fast food.
R2K
June 4th, 2006 at 8:03 pm#18 Good Point and reminds me of the orweinian logic that is going on these days:
Ignorance is Strength
June 4th, 2006 at 8:17 pm#19, The argument is about commanders' responsibilities for war crimes. It is not dubious, it is real and legitimate. Study some international law before you make such claims.
There may come a day when this argument is used against Bush, Cheney, Rumsfield and possibly many, many others in the chain of command in International War Crimes Tribunals.
Let them be convicted or exhonorated before the world for their actions.
June 4th, 2006 at 8:20 pmAlex,
June 4th, 2006 at 8:35 pmWhen war crimes are committed, it is the leaders who are ultimately responsible. This does not lessen the culpability of the individual perpetrators though. Bush is responsible for every death that has occured in Iraq. He lied to the American people and the Congress to engage our country in an illegal war of aggression.
What does it say about our country that the best that we can offer our youth is a choice between flipping burgers, or going in the army to get shot at. In the six years that the Rethugs have been in control of the government, they have consistently made cuts to assistance programs for higher education. Many of those in the military now joined to get the educational benefits because they or their parents did not have the resources to pay for higher education.
Some of these kids are on their third and fourth deployments, and have had their enlistments extended indefineitely.
Colorado,
I had my students read 1984 this past spring. Thinkprogress and MichaelMoore became valuable resources as I could show my students real-life applications of the techniques used by Big Brother. It seems like this Administration is using 1984 as a blueprint for how to govern.
Case in point: the article about Karl Zinsmeister, Bush’s new domestic policy adviser, altering quotations in a profile of him published by the paper in 2004.
This is exactly what Winston, the main character in 1984 did for The Party.
"He who controls the Past controls the Future. He who controls the Present controls the Past." - George Orwell, 1984.
June 4th, 2006 at 8:38 pmAnvilhead,
Instead of coming on this web site and blowing out your hot, noxious fumes; maybe you should go enlist in the Army and show them how it's done. If you're going to talk the talk, you better walk the walk, punk.
A veteran
June 4th, 2006 at 8:39 pmRumsfeld will not resign because Bush, Cheney and Rummy are about ready to launch an attack on Iran, which most likely will ignite global WWIII and martial law in the United States! Expect an initial draft of everyone between the ages of 18 and 42, then like Hitler when he started to lose WWII, Bush will draft 16 to 50 year olds! But Bush's daughters will be exempt and Cheney's and Hillary Clinton's Chelsea as well from the draft!
June 4th, 2006 at 9:04 pmANVILHEAD,
When you take a shit, does your head cave in?
-GSD
June 4th, 2006 at 9:39 pmPost 26 ANVIL > did you hit your head on an anvil or did you hit yourself on the head with a hammer?
June 4th, 2006 at 9:42 pmMee thinks the one with a head like an anvil waxes sarcastic, albeit quite well I might add.
June 4th, 2006 at 9:52 pmworfeus-
June 4th, 2006 at 10:03 pmanilingushead has been a bomb-thrower at tp for a while now. that's not sarcasm, that's pure, unadulterated koolaid-drinker backwash.
Expect an initial draft of everyone between the ages of 18 and 42
Comment by Jay Randal
Since 14 year olds are now considered old enough to pay income tax, they're probably considered old enough to be drafted.
June 4th, 2006 at 10:12 pmA draft won't matter if Bush nukes Iran.
Neither will global warming.
Nor "protecting marriage," "illegal immigration," "banning abortion," etc., etc., etc.
June 4th, 2006 at 10:40 pmDon Rumsfield should be tried for war crimes. The long suffering Iraqi people deserve to see him brought to justice right along side of his old buddy Saddam.
June 5th, 2006 at 12:47 amRummy IS a national disgrace.
June 5th, 2006 at 1:08 amRemember this news a year ago ????
'Arrest threat' to Rumsfeld trip
The US defence secretary has said he is considering whether to attend a conference in Germany, where he may face arrest for war crimes.
Donald Rumsfeld is due to attend a gathering of high-level defence officials and experts next week.
But he says he has not yet decided whether or not to attend the conference in the German city of Munich.
US lawyers representing Iraqis who say they were abused in US custody have filed a complaint with a German court.
'War crimes'
"It's certainly an issue. It's something that we have to take into consideration," Mr Rumsfeld said on Thursday.
"Whether I'll end up there, we'll soon know. It'll be a week and we'll find out."
There is no mention of Mr Rumsfeld's attendance on the website for the conference, which runs from 11-13 February.
In a suit filed with German federal prosecutors, the New-York based Center for Constitutional Rights accuses Mr Rumsfeld of war crimes linked to the alleged abuse of detainees at Iraq's Abu Ghraib detention centre.
US investigations into the abuse scandal have concluded that he was not directly responsible.
The complaint was filed in Germany as its laws allow war crimes and human rights violations to be prosecuted across international boundaries.
The prosecutor's office has not taken any action on the complaint, filed last November.
The conference has not always been a welcome event for Mr Rumsfeld - in 2003, German Foreign Minister, Joschka Fischer, publicly challenged Mr Rumsfeld's justifications for possible military action over Iraq, precipitating a deterioration in relations between the two nations.
HOPEFULLY THIS WILL HAPPEN ONE DAY SOON AS THE EVIDENCE MOUNTS UP AGAINST RUMFELD
June 5th, 2006 at 4:50 amAnvilhead,did you serve with the Power Rangers Playground Platoon? The way you talk, makes one think the closet you ever came to seeing any action, was when you bumped your head falling off your Combat Tricycle(with training wheels)! Do everyone a favor and slither back into your George Bush Tree-House !
June 5th, 2006 at 7:14 amPaul Krugman on the Senate almost passing that estate tax repeal: “In the interest of stiffening those spines, let me remind senators that this isn't just a fiscal issue, it's also a moral issue. Congress has already declared that the budget deficit is serious enough to warrant depriving children of health care; how can it now say that it's worth enlarging the deficit to give Paris Hilton a tax break?â€
June 5th, 2006 at 7:51 amRumsfeld once said during the controversy over the soldiers lacking body armor "You go to war with the army you have." We did and look what it has achieved for the United States.
June 5th, 2006 at 8:15 amGen. Batiste:
"I was a one-star general, and believe me, no one was going to listen me."
And no one should be listening to you.
June 5th, 2006 at 11:09 amAnd no one should be listening to you.
Comment by memphis minnie — June 5, 2006 @ 11:09 am
Why are you a two star General with more experience?
June 5th, 2006 at 11:22 amWho the f*ck cares?
Comment by DieNowForPeace — June 5, 2006 @ 10:42 am
No one. Thank you.
June 5th, 2006 at 11:23 amI'm really glad General Batiste is out there and like Biden keeping Rummy's feet to the fire...
...history will be the final arbiter, and I'd be willing to bet that Bushiva's intransigence- in not firing Rummy even though experts all agree Rummy should go- will cost him his precious legacy...
...civil war in Iraq has already begun, and there aren't enough American troops to solve it...
...in fact, Haditha probably ensures that attacks against them will be stepped up...
...but the TREASONOUS right wing inbred Bushites like Michelle Malkin, Fox media propaganda who*es like Neil Cavityho (sic), and those on the right wing blog Captain's Quarters continue to vilify heroes like Congressman Murtha and General Batiste...
...in deference to the cowardly deserter Bushiva and his deferment king L'il Dick...
...no wonder Iran wants nukes...
...ONLY in Bushite America...
June 5th, 2006 at 1:38 pmIt's about time someone spoke out about the terrible judgment of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. I have long since thought the the Secretary was acting like an old man too set in his ways to understand the completities of running the current Department of Defense. This is not like the period of the Cold War where enemies and lines were clearly drawn. I first suspected Secretary Rumsfeld didn't know what he was doing when he decided to create a new lean military. He obviously didn't take China into consideration when he made that decision. Any Lt. Colonel who has studied at the Army War colllege should know that Chinese forces are not light, but are mobile and heavy.
If the United States were confronted by Chinese forces, we wouldn't stand much of a chance fighting toe to toe because of Rumsfeld stupid light mobile forces ideas. Yes it is true that heavy equipment like tanks cost a lot more than a humvee, but a humvee doesn't take the same kind of punch which has been proven in Iraq. In fact Iraq has proven that our tank techinology needs to be updated, not thrown away. It is a proven fact the Air Power can be very effective against stationary forces and large formations, but at some point you must use brut forces light tank formations to stop the enemy.
The things I'm talking about don't even take into consideration all of the mistakes the Defense Secretary has made as a leaders since taking office. For example, some conservatives go around talking about a secret program the military had which had discovered the 9-11 hijackers. Well my question is why didn't Rumsfeld of the Joint Chief Chairman Richard Myers know about it. After all isn't it there job to know such things. General Myers was not the right person for his job at that crucial time in our history. Yes he had four stars, but he was too easily pushed into things by Rumsfeld that he knew where bad for our Armed Forces. The problem with Generals like him is that they are too busy trying to climb the ladder and keep their jobs, that they forget to do their jobs.
As for Rummy, I'm sure he is a nice old man, but that all he should be at this point. Let him go about to private life and run what ever companies he wants to. Our national defense is too important to have an incompetent old man running them at this point in time. The President should give him the "medal of freedom" and a retirement ceremony, and a hardy handshake and just say goodbye. What Rumsfeld doesn't understand or refuses to it that history will say that he was probably the worse Defense Secretary in the past 50 years if not in history. The Iraq war will be left hanging around his neck like a lead weight.
June 5th, 2006 at 2:38 pmIt's about time someone spoke out about the terrible judgment of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. I have long since thought the the Secretary was acting like an old man too set in his ways to understand the completities of running the current Department of Defense. This is not like the period of the Cold War where enemies and lines were clearly drawn. I first suspected Secretary Rumsfeld didn't know what he was doing when he decided to create a new lean military. He obviously didn't take China into consideration when he made that decision. Any Lt. Colonel who has studied at the Army War colllege should know that Chinese forces are not light, but are mobile and heavy.
If the United States were confronted by Chinese forces, we wouldn't stand much of a chance fighting toe to toe because of Rumsfeld stupid light mobile forces ideas. Yes it is true that heavy equipment like tanks cost a lot more than a humvee, but a humvee doesn't take the same kind of punch which has been proven in Iraq. In fact Iraq has proven that our tank techinology needs to be updated, not thrown away. It is a proven fact the Air Power can be very effective against stationary forces and large formations, but at some point you must use brut forces light tank formations to stop the enemy.
The things I'm talking about don't even take into consideration all of the mistakes the Defense Secretary has made as a leaders since taking office. For example, some conservatives go around talking about a secret program the military had which had discovered the 9-11 hijackers. Well my question is why didn't Rumsfeld of the Joint Chief Chairman Richard Myers know about it. After all isn't it there job to know such things. General Myers was not the right person for his job at that crucial time in our history. Yes he had four stars, but he was too easily pushed into things by Rumsfeld that he knew where bad for our Armed Forces. The problem with Generals like him is that they are too busy trying to climb the ladder and keep their jobs, that they forget to do their jobs.
As for Rummy, I'm sure he is a nice old man, but that all he should be at this point. Let him go about to private life and run what ever companies he wants to. Our national defense is too important to have an incompetent old man running them at this point in time. The President should give him the "medal of freedom" and a retirement ceremony, and a hardy handshake and just say goodbye. What Rumsfeld doesn't understand or refuses to it that history will say that he was probably the worse Defense Secretary in the past 50 years if not in history. The Iraq war will be left hanging around his neck like a lead weight.
June 5th, 2006 at 2:38 pmI remember when her first came out against Rumsfeld, his attitude was sort of quiet and bemused, almost casual. Lately, I can only call Gen. Batiste's manner as impassioned and grave.
June 5th, 2006 at 4:52 pmI remember when he first came out against Rumsfeld, his attitude was sort of quiet and bemused, almost like he was embarrassed to have to talk about it.. Lately, I can only call Gen. Batiste's manner as passionate and grave. A much different delivery. Perhaps he ran into the same barrier we all ran into when we tried to speak out. Slander, accusations, bullying. Now he's just like the rest of us, voices crying in the wilderness.
June 5th, 2006 at 4:56 pmFeels shitty.
Welcome to the club, General.
MG Batiste is right. I served with him in Iraq from FEB 04 until FEB 05. He is a straight shooter. He is saying what we all wanted to say. We have no compunction about prosecuting a duly declared war on terror. Our issue is the way it is being prosecuted. If the Dems had any one who has served in the military in the last 30 years, they too would be yelling about Rumsfeld's inablility to prosecute a war.
June 6th, 2006 at 11:02 pmNice post!
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Part of the Nuremberg Decisions (one of the USA's finer contributions to International Law) is that aggressive war is the worst of all war crimes, because it makes all the others possible. Cheney, Bush & Rumsfeld have committed high crimes by breaking international law. Impeachment is imperative.
June 8th, 2006 at 6:04 pm