And what you need is something that makes sure that. I mean, the place will brief you on almost anything. In an April interview, Aspin said the hardest thing about running the Pentagon is creating "a structure which gets you the right information and not the bull - information.
Although he regards it as a drain on his time, he not only sat through Wednesday's graduation ceremony of the National Defense University but shook hands with all 386 graduates.īut after years of sparring with the military as chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, he can still speak with remarkable frankness of his mistrust. He has made many gestures of friendship and respect toward Powell and the uniformed services.
The tone of some of the things that have come out of the front office haven't helped."Īspin sets part of that tone. "If you take the whole policy group, which is the issue, there's a kind of a suspicion of the military or apparent suspicion that encourages misunderstanding. "This is an issue I've worried about and even talked to folks about," said a top political appointee. If the secretariat believes they are the keepers of the truth, that may give the service chiefs some latitude to maneuver with the chairman staff and the senior uniformed leadership." "We're not going to say we're ready if we're not. "We're not going to say we have enough money if we don't," said a senior officer representing the view of his service chief. Some uniformed leaders, for their part, are speaking of open dissent. "On the force structure, you'd like them to be along, and maybe they would be along, but that's not critical," the official said. He meets every Saturday with Powell and the service chiefs in what he considers "an extraordinarily collaborative process." But the ultimate decisions are his. Aspin, the official said, believes the decision on how - and even whether - to use force "really does belong in the military's hands." On social issues such as lifting the homosexual ban, Aspin also believes it is critical to carry the chiefs.īut on the shape, size and basic strategy of the defense establishment, the official said, Aspin is willing to lay down the law. One official said Aspin has deferred to Powell and the regional commanders in handling the operations in Somalia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. Military operations, in Aspin's view, are a different matter. Both sides appear to believe they will reach accommodation by July 15 on a proposal to open the services to homosexuals, but they are not as confident on Aspin's "bottom-up review" of the size and shape of future military forces.Īspin has said privately he is prepared to push through a new force structure and military strategy, if need be, without the support of the three major uniformed centers of power: the services, the Joint Staff and the regional commanders in chief. "It had eroded, frankly, during previous administrations." Relying on the Joint Staff and the services for staff work, he said, is tempting because "they're very good at moving paper" - but it means the secretariat never truly takes control.Īspin is now entering what sources say he regards as "a critical month" in his tenure, and both his aides and some military chiefs are beginning to anticipate the possibility of an open rift. "We are coming in and reasserting civilian authority," said a ranking defense official who is closely acquainted with Aspin's views.
Although cooperation is still the norm, the top brass find themselves held at arm's length after 12 years in which they worked hand-in-glove with their civilian overseers. There are many signs at the Pentagon of erosion in the solidarity of purpose between civilian and uniformed leaders. But hard feelings linger four weeks later among some of the nation's senior uniformed leaders, and the issue amounts to more than discomfort with Aspin's unstructured management style. Guidry Jr., has since apologized for what he described as an uncharacteristic communication failure. Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, barely found out in time to tune in the announcement on the Pentagon's in-house television channel.Īspin's spokesman, Vernon A. Defense Secretary Les Aspin had announced a major initiative that morning on U.S. The guys were Powell's fellow military chiefs, called hastily to his office late last month on the afternoon of their latest unpleasant surprise. Then came this: "Guys, he didn't tell me either." Powell began the unscheduled meeting with an exasperated curse.
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