Conway’s Corps

[thedrifter]

December 11, 2006 <br />
Conway’s Corps <br />
The new top Marine brings a host of new ideas and plans to the job <br />
<br />
By Gordon Lubold <br />
Staff writer <br />
<br />
He’s talking about a new PT uniform, increasing time at...

[thedrifter]

December 11, 2006

Marines’ questions get answers from the brass

Commandant Gen. James Conway and Sgt. Maj. John Estrada, sergeant major of the Marine Corps, took dozens of questions from Marines during their recent trip to bases and stations in North Carolina. Conway, who has been away from the Corps for almost three years as director of operations for the Joint Staff at the Pentagon, acknowledged that he is still getting up to speed on some of the issues. But he and Estrada took a stab at each one. Their answers to some of the issues Marines asked about:

On extending Marines in combat:

Conway doesn’t ever want to extend Marines past their seven-month rotations, but he has said he’ll do it if he has to, to meet a potential requirement. For example, if commanders in Iraq say they need to surge troops and increase their levels temporarily, Conway said he’ll do it.

“I think it’s something that we have to consider,” he said, hinting that if it did happen, extending Marines “another month or two” to give commanders in Iraq an experienced force would be worth it.

“I don’t think as a matter of course we like to do that,” he said.

On the Navy-Marine Corps Intranet, or NMCI:


Many Marines would like to see the Corps drop NMCI like a bad habit. Ain’t gonna happen. As Estrada said, NMCI is “one of the most popular” questions he receives.

Leathernecks hate the computer network. Even the sergeant major, whose own computer system was down for several days when it was installed recently, hates it. He said he couldn’t even stand to be in the same room with the NMCI systems folks. But he knows he has to live with it, Estrada said. “We have to make it work as a Corps. NMCI owns everything, your mouse, your computer, your mousepad, your monitor. … We would have to spend billions, probably, to go back to the old way,” Estrada said. “We have to work with them, hold them accountable; we have to get this right.”

On equipment:

As much of the Corps’ equipment gets spent in Iraq, Conway said, it’s time for the Corps to go shopping. But what to get? “Do we buy new, old gear, or do we modernize, and go to next-generation stuff?”

Conway, who may wish he could go for the latter, is diplomatic in his answer: He doesn’t give one publicly. “The answer is, we gotta be smart, well within the nation’s resources, and do the right thing with the money that we are provided.”

On hearing from Marines:

“I like lots of input, I like the debate,” Conway said. “We’ll make a decision, but I think you make a better decision when you have all kinds of perspective, and yours is as valuable as General Stalder’s is, quite frankly,” he said, referring to Lt. Gen. Keith Stalder, commander of II Marine Expeditionary Force, who was sitting nearby. Conway, who has already said that the new PT uniform will be the result of Marine feedback, said he is “re-energizing” the Marine Mail program that allows Marines to submit questions and ideas to the top of the command chain.

On the Marine Corps Martial Arts Program:

“I don’t see any changes to MCMAP,” Conway told a group of Marines at New River. He said MCMAP is “just what Marines should be doing,” and he wants to see it continue, but he doesn’t anticipate major changes. No word yet on if it could be tied to promotions any time soon.

On tattoos:

If you thought the new commandant might be taking the Corps’ policy on tattoos a different way, you’d be wrong. Conway thinks the current policy “is just about right,” as he told Marines several times during his visit. He takes a dim view of tattoo “sleeves,” which he said simply make a Marine less competitive in and outside the Corps when it comes to promotion opportunities or getting a job.

His only real concern is that the policy, which may see some minor tweaking, is applied uniformly across the Corps. The commandant hinted that a board would be formed to ensure that the policy on tattoos is not interpreted one way on the East Coast and another way on the West Coast.

On Marines and Hadithah:

Conway doesn’t want to talk about the various high-profile cases based on incidents in Iraq and a rape case involving Marines in the Philippines. But he said the Corps is taking a hard look at training to ensure that core values of honor, courage and commitment are being taught as strongly as they can be. “Our Marine ethos, our culture … is something that we hold very dear,” he said.

On the new Democratic Congress:

To many questions about how the new Democratic Congress could affect Marines, Conway said he was told by a senior Marine official on Capitol Hill that he sums up the new Congress in one word: “opportunity.” Conway said it doesn’t matter to him if the Congress is Democratic or Republican — both parties recognize the importance of the Corps and what it does for the nation.

On the MV-22 Osprey:

Conway, who has now ridden in the Corps’ still-controversial MV-22 Osprey three times, said he thinks the tilt-rotor replacement to the CH-46 Sea Knight helicopter will be taking Marines into the fight soon.

The Osprey is slated to be operational sometime next year, but it’s still unclear where it will go for its first real-world mission. Conway said he thinks it could be used in Iraq, but after that decision was made earlier this year by the previous commandant, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said he thought the decision should get more review before the aircraft sees combat.

Conway, who spoke to Osprey pilots and crew at Marine Corps Air Station New River, N.C., gave the Osprey two thumbs up.

“Our belief is that it’s a great airplane,” he said.

— Gordon Lubold

Ellie

[thedrifter]

December 11, 2006
Meeting the troops

By Gordon Lubold
Staff writer

When Commandant Gen. James Conway takes his show on the road, there’s not a lot of “me time.”

Conway, 58, has been busy during his first days in office. On his first road trip in late November, he talked to thousands of Marines over the course of seven “town hall” meetings at three bases and stations in North Carolina. It was all part of a tour to help the general get to know some of the Corps’ 180,000 Marines — and for them to see him. Marine Corps Times went along for the ride.

Flying in the plush confines of a 12-seat Gulfstream jet with power window shades, closed-circuit TV and a personal chef, Conway and his wife, Annette, flew from Andrews Air Force Base, Md., to Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, N.C. There, Conway spoke to two groups of about 1,500 Marines each, telling them his first job is to take care of Marines in combat.

In case they don’t get a chance to read it themselves, Conway summarized the “Commandant’s Planning Guidance,” a lengthy document summing up his perspectives as he embarks on his four-year tour. He also announced new programs and initiatives, like the design of a new PT uniform that may be ready by early next year.


In his meetings with Marines, Conway said he wants questions and feedback from the force. But when it comes to standing up before their Marine brethren to ask the man a question, some groups are more prepared than others. Officials acknowledged that it can be like pulling teeth to get Marines to ask questions during some meetings. At others, leathernecks line up to get in their two cents.

At one meeting at Cherry Point, for example, some Marines asked about the Navy-Marine Corps Intranet, still plagued with problems and eagerly criticized by most who use it. Others had questions about housing allowance or leave policy.

One Marine asked why the U.S. went into Iraq in the first place based on false intelligence. Conway gave the standard Bush administration answer, but the Marine persisted awkwardly until the rest of the room barked at him to sit down.

But the really big issue at Cherry Point was chow and entertainment. Located in Havelock, N.C., local Marines like to call it “Havenot” for its lack of amenities. One Marine said he had better food in Iraq than he does in garrison. “What can be done to fix the problem?” the Marine asked, getting headache-inducing cheers from his brothers and sisters.

Conway, accompanied by Sgt. Maj. John Estrada, sergeant major of the Marine Corps, said he got the message and would look into it.

Assigned to a job on the Pentagon’s Joint Staff for more than two years, Conway acknowledges he’s a bit rusty on some of the ins and outs of the Corps.

During some town hall meetings, Marines stood to ask him when the Corps was going to change this or that personnel policy, or why the permissive temporary additional duty policy hadn’t been changed.

After taking a dozen or so questions at one event, Conway was whisked back to his temporary quarters in a black SUV with aides, security personnel, handlers and the general officers hosting him in tow. Think “Entourage,” the popular HBO show about Hollywood actors, but with digital cammies and high-and-tights.

After an evening social with top officers at the base, Conway was flown back to Washington to catch a meeting with the defense secretary nominee Robert Gates, only to get back on the jet to return to North Carolina. This time, he was taken to Marine Corps Air Station New River, where he landed and immediately got on an MV-22 Osprey to fly across the New River to meet with more Marines.

That was only the second day of a three-day whirlwind tour during which every minute appeared to be scheduled. Each event was prefaced and finished with any number of Marines, commanders or other officials who wanted to shake Conway’s hand, get a coin or bend his ear.

By the end of the trip, it was time for home. But traveling like this isn’t all bad. On the plane, Gunnery Sgt. Kevin Saskowski, one of Conway’s two traveling chefs, said he particularly enjoys making desserts for the plane rides, like white chocolate mousse. So far, the Conways seem to be big on simple sandwiches. On the first trip to North Carolina, Saskowski whipped up 10 chicken breast sandwiches with basil, cheese and sweet peppers with homemade chocolate chip cookies to follow.

He acknowledged that Conway’s already hectic travel schedule will likely keep him away from home a bit, but he loves the work.

“It’s the greatest job,” Saskowski said. “For a cook in the Marine Corps, absolutely.”

Ellie