Douglas Lute

Army Lieutenant General Douglas Lute was named May 15, 2007, by President George W. Bush as Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for Iraq and Afghanistan. In that position, Lute is "charged with coordinating the efforts of the Executive Branch to support our commanders and senior diplomats on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan," the White House announcement stated.

Lute, who will act as Bush's "pointman", "ending a frustrated search for a 'war czar'," will serve under National Security Adviser Stephen J. Hadley, "who said he wanted somebody who would focus full time on Iraq and Afghanistan, doing what he would do if he had the time to do it." [1]

"As if it isn’t bad enough to start a job not knowing what your responsibilities will be, Lute gets to look forward to having his name discredited every time the president makes a mistake. I don’t think it’s a matter of if Lute will be fired before Bush’s term ends, I think it’s a matter of when," blogger Gary Graca commented May 15, 2007, in the Michigan Daily. "Poor guy. At least you can keep a little bit of dignity when you sell kitchen knives."

Wrong in 2005

On August 23, 2005, Lute, then director of operations at U.S. Central Command and "the general responsible for near-term planning" in Iraq, said that the US was "expected to pull significant numbers of troops out of Iraq in the next 12 months in spite of the continuing violence" and that "the reductions were part of a push by Gen John Abizaid, commander of all US troops in the region, to put the burden of defending Iraq on Iraqi forces." Lute also "denied the withdrawal was motivated by political pressure from Washington." [2]

Only the week before, Gen. Peter J. Schoomaker, then Army chief of staff, said "his office was planning for the possibility that troop levels could be maintained until 2009. But Maj Gen Lute said such a worst-case scenario was unlikely. ... 'I will tell you this, as the operation officer of Centcom, if a year from now I've got to call on all those army troops that Gen Schoomaker is prepared to provide, I won't feel real good about myself'." [3]

In July 2005, Gen. George W. Casey, Jr., then commander of allied forces in Iraq, made similar comments on "reductions that could come by early [2006] but they were quickly played down by the White House." [4]

Question of effectiveness

Lute, 54, currently serving as director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, "was selected after several prominent retired generals turned down offers or overtures to become the White House's 'war czar'. ... [Lute] has been a three star general only since September [2006], but he has deep experience in the Middle East and was heavily involved in the planning for the current 'surge' of US troops to Iraq." [5]

"Some questioned how effective a three star general would be in managing a war effort from the White House amid four star military commanders and cabinet secretaries." [6]

Experience

Lute served as operations director of U.S. Central Command from 2004 to September 2006, "overseeing combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. He ran US military operations in the Levant during [the 2006] fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon." [7]

External Links

2005

• Peter Spiegel and Demetri Sevastopulo, "US general sees significant withdrawal in Iraq," Financial Times, August 24, 2005.

2007

• Fact Sheet: Lieutenant General Douglas E. Lute: Experience and Authority, Office of the White House Press Secretary, May 15, 2007.
• Steve Holland, "Bush picks Gen. Lute as 'war czar' for Iraq," Reuters, May 15, 2007.
• Jim Mannion, "Bush picks general as 'war czar'," news.com.au, May 15, 2007.
• "US names general to be 'war tsar'," BBC News, May 15, 2007.
• Gary Graca, "The worst job in America," The Podium Blog/Michigan Daily, May 15, 2007.
• Barney Porter, "White House creates new job to improve conflict co-ordination," The World Today/ABC News (Australia), May 16, 2007.