Petraeus’s “Hedge ”

After watching General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker twist and turn through two congressional hearings the essence of their collective recommendations is to “stay the course.” The long anticipated plan for a military roll back is to reduce the troop level to a little higher than their pre-surge level and then stand fast. The experts then requiring a period of at least 45 days to consider whether any further force reduction is advisable. Shades of General Patton; that good soldier must be turning over in his grave at the lack of decisiveness in current military planning.

After quelling a near case of “mal de mer” when Senator Lindsay Graham declared his regret at his inability to award Petraeus a fifth star, I watched with interest as General and Ambassador dodging questions did a two step worthy of Astaire and Rogers.
Displaying an array of charts and graphs worthy of a sales campaign kickoff, the duo attempted to graphically demonstrate a myriad of reasons why Iraq remains unstable and the outcome unpredictable. Declaring that we have not turned any corners and he could not see any light at the end of the tunnel, the General and Ambassador are busily assisting State in crafting an agreement with the Iraqi’s government which will commit as to an ad infinitum support for the regime, but bypass the required senatorial ratification for treaty commitment.

Essentially, Petraeus argues for a reactive rather than a pro-active policy, contending that conditions on the ground should control policy rather than policy determine future actions. In effect, the general would rather “hedge” his bets by not taking a position.

Somehow, one is reminded of Lincoln’s barb at General McClelland’s failure to take any action with the Army of the Potomac, when he asked the General if he could borrow the Army since the General wasn’t using it.

Precisely why Petraeus was selected for his command from among a galaxy of other four stars in the Pentagon is unclear, but his advise seems always to be in lock step with President Bush’s inspired leadership with respect to Iraq.