Comments on Bloggings by boz: The transition and Latin America

The test for Cabinet should not be “what’s best fo...

2008-11-03T09:45:34.701-05:00

The test for Cabinet should not be “what’s best for the Party” it should be “what’s best for the country.”

I agree with you. However, I don't believe that just one person is qualified to be SECDEF (or any other cabinet position) at any given moment. There are Democrats and Republicans who are qualified to be Secretary of Defense and I'd like to see Obama choose one of the qualified Democrats to start off his administration.

Boz, just saw you’re note. Will shoot you an emai...

2008-11-03T09:38:41.209-05:00

Boz, just saw you’re note. Will shoot you an email tonight.

… but I want a Democrat at DOD

This reminds me why politicos give me the heebie-jeebies. The test for Cabinet should not be “what’s best for the Party” it should be “what’s best for the country.”

Frank,I commented over at Yglesias' blog about tha...

2008-11-02T06:53:50.848-05:00

Frank,
I commented over at Yglesias' blog about that a few days ago.

I like Gates, I think his vision for transforming the military (and inter-agency) is a good one, but I think Obama should name his own SECDEF. I'm not opposed to asking Gates to move to a different cabinet position or to the NSC for a few months to smooth the transition, and I'm willing to take Republicans in almost any other cabinet position, but I want a Democrat at DOD.

While this is not one of the positions that you li...

2008-11-01T22:47:02.868-04:00

While this is not one of the positions that you list, I'm hearing talk that BOTH candidates may keep Robert Gates as Secretary of Defense. That would be interesting. And good, in my opinion.

Well, the best way of doing that would be to insti...

2008-10-30T05:53:51.920-04:00

Well, the best way of doing that would be to instigate a US - Cuba war, and see which general runs the invasion.

Hahaha.

I would hope there is a better way to resolve our bureaucratic disputes.

" Alright, so we have a bet. We just have to figur...

2008-10-30T00:01:40.040-04:00

" Alright, so we have a bet. We just have to figure out how to measure it :)"

Well, the best way of doing that would be to instigate a US - Cuba war, and see which general runs the invasion. Having the boiler of a US warship off Havana harbor blow up seem to have done the trick in the past ;^).

Really, I can only think of one question: Sound st...

2008-10-29T20:39:13.105-04:00

Really, I can only think of one question: Sound strategic vision vis-à-vis security challenges in the area, civil-military balances, etc.

I agree with that. But that's true for every combatant command in some way.

If you strip away Guantanamo issues, I’ll take that bet.

Alright, so we have a bet. We just have to figure out how to measure it :)

Shoot me an e-mail when you have a chance.

…but learning curves matter. You’d think, but to m...

2008-10-29T17:48:18.381-04:00

…but learning curves matter.

You’d think, but to my knowledge (admittedly, an inch deep) we have never had a Southcom Commander that was a Latin Americanist. It’s would be VERY nice to have a Commander with familiarity, but it’s not critical. In fact, it’s a career killer in the military (being a Latin Americanist, not a Combatant Commander).

Let me turn point one back on you. If my two questions don't matter, then what two questions do matter for Southcom commander?

Really, I can only think of one question: Sound strategic vision vis-à-vis security challenges in the area, civil-military balances, etc. All others, familiarity with the region and language ability come to mind, are secondary. But here again, the selection would not be representative of Obama policy. That's the point I was trying to make. The Southcom Commander is more representative of the DoD view towards Latin America than the President’s view (or the State Department's).

I'd bet money that the people at Southcom spend more time thinking about Cuba policy than the people at Northcom

If you strip away Guantanamo issues, I’ll take that bet. It’s a matter of resources. Let me say again: there are no Cuba desk officers at Southcom. Without desk officers the country does not exist, bureaucratically speaking: no policies, plans, or operations are developed. It’s the same with Mexico. Nada, at Southcom.

DH,He'd be a great choice for special envoy, but I...

2008-10-29T16:18:05.773-04:00

DH,
He'd be a great choice for special envoy, but I'm not sure he'd leave the governor's mansion for it. (ok, so I broke my rule there about not speculating).

GS,Thanks for your comments.1. You're right that ...

2008-10-29T16:16:30.651-04:00

GS,

Thanks for your comments.

1. You're right that the military branch is an inside baseball question, but the LatAm experience is not. It makes a difference if the president nominates a Southcom commander who speaks Spanish and actually has significant experience in the region. I have very high respect for the amount of time Stavridis has spent learning about the region (and encouraging the rest of the command to do likewise), but learning curves matter.

Let me turn point one back on you. If my two questions don't matter, then what two questions do matter for Southcom commander?

2. You're technically correct, but I'd bet money that the people at Southcom spend more time thinking about Cuba policy than the people at Northcom. Culturally, Southcom thinks it's theirs, even if the map says otherwise. It'd be a good thing for the new president to clarify.

3. I imagine he's in the private sector these days. I disagreed with his ideology, but it's hard not to respect the personal story.

Despite rumors to the contrary, I don't think Bill...

2008-10-29T16:08:33.239-04:00

Despite rumors to the contrary, I don't think Bill Richardson will be given Secy of State (I'd bet on Lugar, myself, especially given his close relationship with Biden, who will clearly have a foreign policy role of sorts in an Obama administration), but Special Envoy to the Western Hemisphere might be a good position for Richardson.

Two comments and a question:1. On the new Southco...

2008-10-29T15:51:19.594-04:00

Two comments and a question:

1. On the new Southcom Commander, your two “big questions” are not really big. That is, they are inside baseball (or in this case, inside the Pentagon) questions that won’t impact US policy in the region. At best, they could be a bellwether for the security approach to the region taken by the Department of Defense, but not really anything much beyond that. And even this is a very limited bellwether.

2. Cuba—the country—falls in Northern Command’s Area of Responsibility (i.e., there is no “Cuba desk” at Southcom, but there is such a desk at Northcom). But Guantamo, that is, forces in the Guantanamo Naval Base, fall under the Southern Command’s chain of command.

3. Whatever happened to the guy that was the DASD before Steve Johnson, the guy that took off to fight in Afghanistan smack in the middle of his tenure? Pardo Mauer or something like that….

Another interesting thing would be if Obama decide...

2008-10-29T13:23:02.353-04:00

Another interesting thing would be if Obama decides to push to separate USAID from State altogether. Whether or not this would relatively strenghten or weaken USAID's policy-setting ability (which seems unclear), this would at least give Cardenas' successor some more flexibility.

Look for there to be more Hispanics appoitned to t...

2008-10-29T12:41:38.591-04:00

Look for there to be more Hispanics appoitned to these positions under Obama. I expect more changes in style than real substance. I hope to be pleasantly surprised.

Shaking up USAID would be a fantastic move. The or...

2008-10-29T12:19:37.806-04:00

Shaking up USAID would be a fantastic move. The organization has lost any credibility it may have had when first developed due to the blatant politization under both parties.

If I can ask/impose a favor, keep this comment thr...

2008-10-29T05:21:08.418-04:00

If I can ask/impose a favor, keep this comment thread on topic and civil in tone. I'm looking for comments and critiques about the post above as well as additional positions in the U.S. bureaucracy that are relevant to the region.

If you want to talk smack about the elections, accuse me of pro-Obama or pro-Washington bias or generally argue about stuff, I've created a separate open thread for you above this post.

I'm going to delete comments in this thread I think are off topic and/or not civil. So if you think you might go there, just comment in the open thread above and I'll let you rant.