Gary Hart, Military Mastermind

A few weeks ago, John J. Miller, a reporter for National Review posted a few questions for Gary Hart to answer concerning his supposed military expertise. It's odd to me that Mr. Hart receives such glowing reviews from the political left for his political knowledge, but I suppose a certain sort of marginally-informed pessimism works wonders on that side of the political fence.

Hart decided to answer Miller's questions, and Miller was kind enough to report the results to us, his faithful audience. It makes interesting reading.

#2: THE GULF WAR
Miller: You made bold predictions about the Gulf War, too. Shortly after Iraq invaded Kuwait, you were pessimistic about what would become Operation Desert Storm. "After twelve years on the Senate Armed Services Committee, I know we are not prepared to fight a war in the desert," you said. "Our weapons were designed to fight a war in Europe." In a New York Times op-ed, you added this: "Loss of lives, including American lives, would be substantial." My question: Why did our military do so well in the Gulf War, when you thought it would do so poorly?

Hart: Our military's initial successes in Gulf War I were largely due to the adoption of maneuver warfare tactics long advocated by military reformers. And we learned a great deal about the performance and non-performance of various weapons systems that have been since been incorporated to improve their performance.

The whole conversation goes in just such a manner. Gary answers, but he doesn't really answer. He doesn't explain why his opinion--remember, the opinion of a supposed expert--was so remarkably off the mark in a number of issues.

His tremendous ability to duck questions while sounding intelligent, though, reminds me a lot of another Commander in Chief. Maybe he really could have been a great president--as long as, by great, you accept the Clintonian model of greatness.

Read the story on National Review.

Bonus Link: Read my entry about his decision to not run for President of the United States of America.

Posted by zombyboy at May 20, 2003 12:00 AM | TrackBack