President/ Commander in Chief?

[Osotogary]

Does being a President automatically make that person a good Commander-in-Chief?
Can a bad President be a very good and capable Commander-in- Chief?
Can a good President be an inadequate Commander-in-Chief?

What's the trade off? Would you rather have a good President or a good Commander-in- Chief if both, at the same time, were not possible?

[USMC-FO]

No
Yes
Yes

Tough tough question ..... I think the answer is highly dependent on on the values one places, individually, on the various issues that pop up over the course of a presential term. I think all things considered, that I would opt for a less able president who is a good CIC Particularly in this day and age. I guess each of us has to ask ourselves what we have today.

[HardJedi]

personally? I think if you had a good President, he wouldn't NEED to act as the CIC. he would appoint competent cheifs of staff, and keep his hands off. Also, If he was a REALLY good president, I mean the IDEAL PERFECT one, then hell, we wouldn't even have to USE the military, he could just talk everyone into doing what we wanted


In all seriousness though, that is an EXCELLENT question, and will require me to do some ACTUALL thinking, to come up with my real answer.

[cjwright90]

Now if the president had three Purple Hearts, would he be a good...Just kidding.
Good question Gary.
Now for my long winded reply:
I do not think being a good president makes you a good CIC right off the bat. It could be possible, I suppose depending on the type of leader that president is. I also think it depends on the situation. Is it peacetime or not? Had the president been a senior military leader prior to his election as president? I think a president that was a senior ground leader in a combat situation might make a better CIC in a non-peacetime scenario. Like a Gen. Schwartzkopf or a Gen. Franks. In peacetime, like Jedi said, a truly Great President would not need a CIC, he could resolve things without military might. My .02.

[Osotogary]

cjwright90,
I most certainly agree that there are too many variables for consideration when answering the questions that I have asked and, I might add, your .02 is worth $$$$$$$$$$. Thanks for your reply. Thanks to everyone for their replies.
Now it's back to Ellie's offerings at "Wake up Marines". LOL

[fulmetaljackass]

cjwright.....think maybe Schwartzkopf or Franks would consider running for office?

[decuervo]

When I saw the question the first thing that came into my head was what I would like to have, and what Bush offers, as both president and CIC.
What I want:
-Strong leadership that says what he means and means what he says
-Someone who respects the armed forces and trusts their judgement
-A person who knows what the presidents role is in domestic and foriegn policy
-A person with a strong moral/ethical compass
What Bush offers:
-He said as much today. He means what he says and says what he means
-He trusted Tommy Franks assessment of the number of ground forces needed to accomplish the mission
-He's a little confused as to domestic issues but has a strong cabinet to help him
-His moral compass points North

I think Bush is the man we need in office for the here and now. I'll be proud to call him boss come January.

[mrbsox]

No, Yes, and Yes !

A good Manager surrounds him/her self with good people.
A good Manager knows and respects the abilities and limitations of those people.
A good Manager allows his selected people to do the job they were asked/hired to do.
A good Manager knows his/her OWN abilities and limitations.

All of the above is but a part of leadership. If leading the nation, or a squad into a firefight, good leaders are TRUSTED by those they lead. Trusted beyond reproach.

I agree with everybody so far, AND with 'decuervo's assessment of 'lacking' in some domestic issues. But, GWB should be relying on the people incharge of those things to help him succeed, or NONE of the above means anything.

I'm waiting to see what kind (if any) of Cabinet changes take place next year. Whom will he rely on for his decisions ??

Terry

[hrscowboy]

i was so happy to hear ashcroft is resigning hes a puke and the scum of the earth...

[HardJedi]

ashcroft is resigning? I hadn't heard that. Good. never liked him when he was here in missouri.