Did Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin E. Dempsey contradict himself in front of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee this morning?
…“Truly there is no military solution to ISIL,” he said, adding that it could be defeated only with a more comprehensive approach that includes diplomacy. “That may be a tough pill to swallow. But there is no military solution.”…
– Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin E. Dempsey,
testifying before the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee
(Tuesday, September 16th, 2014)
So, if there's "no military solution," of course, the conventional Beltway wisdom is to send in
more U.S. troops to Iraq!
Rinse. Repeat. Mission creep(ier) in Iraq and Syria…
U.S. General to Seek Combat Troops if Airstrikes
Can’t Stop ISIS
By JEREMY W. PETERS
NEW YORK TIMES
SEPT. 16, 2014 11:54AM EDT
WASHINGTON — Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told Congress on Tuesday that he would recommend deploying United States combat forces against Islamic extremists in specific operations if the current strategy of airstrikes was not successful, raising the possibility of the kind of escalation that President Obama has flatly ruled out.
In testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee, he said that while he was confident in the ability of the coalition of American, European and Middle Eastern governments to stop the Islamic State, he could not completely close the door to eventually asking Mr. Obama to commit ground troops to fight the group, known as ISIS or ISIL.
“My view at this point is that this coalition is the appropriate way forward. I believe that will prove true,” he said. “But if it fails to be true, and if there are threats to the United States, then I of course would go back to the president and make a recommendation that may include the use of U.S. military ground forces.”
Any future commitment of American personnel on the ground could put Mr. Obama in a difficult position, as he has repeatedly insisted that no American troops would engage in the battlefield, and Gen. Dempsey sought to explain the apparent contradiction.
“His stated policy is that we will not have U.S. forces in ground combat,” General Dempsey said, adding, “He has told me as well to come back to him on a case-by-case basis.”…
And, over at the WaPo…
Dempsey raises possibility of involving U.S. combat troops in fight against Islamic State
By Craig Whitlock
Washington Post
September 16 at 12:50 PM
The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff raised the possibility Tuesday that U.S. troops could become involved in ground attacks against the Islamic State, despite repeated pledges to the contrary from President Obama.
Army Gen. Martin Dempsey told the Senate Armed Services Committee that U.S. military advisers are helping Iraqi government forces prepare for a major offensive to reclaim territory seized by the Islamic State in recent months. Although the advisers have been assigned primarily to assist with planning and coordination, Dempsey for the first time suggested that they eventually could go into the field on combat missions.
“If we reach the point where I believe our advisers should accompany Iraqi troops on attacks against specific [Islamic State] targets, I’ll recommend that to the president,” he testified.
Obama has ordered the deployment of 1,600 U.S. troops to Iraq since June in an effort to bolster Iraq’s faltering army and stop the Islamic State’s march across the country…
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I thought the new TV season was upon us? Yet, today’s news tells us it’s reruns again!
“All war. All the time.”
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