Senator Inhofe on Resignation of Gen. McChrystal

Today, U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) and the co-chair of the Senate Army Caucus, reacted to news that President Obama accepted the resignation of U.S. Army General Stanley McChrystal, Commander of Allied Forces in Afghanistan:
 
 “General McChrystal’s service and leadership have proven to be invaluable and instrumental to our nation’s military success in Iraq and Afghanistan.  He is an American hero and has selflessly served this nation well. 

However, his recent interview with Rolling Stone was a clear sudden lapse of judgment that cannot be condoned.  That being said, I do believe that we should ask the questions ‘What led McChrystal and his team to feel the way they did?’ and ‘What needs to be corrected in Afghanistan to get the mission on track there?’.   

“President Obama must get his team of civilian advisors for Afghanistan on the same page and present a unified front that provides the support our men and women in uniform need to achieve victory.  The President must clearly articulate a winning strategy that is based on the situation on the ground rather than a date-certain exit.

“I salute General Petreaus for once again answering the call of his nation.  While I know General Petreaus will again perform skillfully on the field of battle, I am concerned about on-going and future operations in Afghanistan.  This change will impact operations in Afghanistan and it will impact our troops, our allies and our Afghan partners.  In order to mitigate this impact, it is imperative that President Obama provide General Petreaus, the new commander on the ground, all funding, personnel and assets he requires to achieve our strategic objectives in Afghanistan.”