Newspaper InsertWesley Clark forgot where he came from
...and now believes his own PR
by Bill Winney, Wyoming Candidate for Congress
General Wesley Clark recently impugned the "executive decision- making ability" of Republican candidate John McCain. He attributed this "lack of executive" ability to the idea that John McCain’s time as a Navy pilot & later as a prisoner-of-war simply did not prepare him for decision-making, particularly at the national level.
Our Submarine Force has jealously husbanded its ability to train and prepare the skippers of our submarines. As I trained for Command, there were two things that the Submarine Force emphasized over and over: don't forget where you came from and don’t believe your own PR (public relations).
As I have read the commentary on Wesley Clark's diminution of John McCain’s experience, I have come to realize that he has succumbed to just these failings.
General Wesley Clark is by all external measures an extraordinary man: West Point graduate, No. 1 in his class, Rhodes Scholar, White House Fellow, Silver Star winner in Viet Nam, and retired Four star officer - his last duty being that of Supreme Allied Commander, Europe.
So why did he say those things, words that seem to be said as if stooping? I can only speculate as to what was in his mind based on my observation of such senior officers over my service.
Perhaps the most cogent thought is that people who have been extraordinarily successful all too easily begin to believe that they are the one and only person who can do certain things; that they got where they are purely by their own brain power; and, that those who did not come up the same path could not be as well prepared as they are.
I once had a trusted and widely experienced skipper tell me that there were three kinds of officers selected for admiral or general: those whose record could not be denied; those who were selected because they were the best guy for a certain and quite specific job; and, finally, those who had made their way climbing the backs of their peers.
What kinds of things should people look for in a potential President? I believe that they are:
1st – A background that gives him a basis to recognize when his close, personal staff has begun to tell him what he wants to hear instead of the hard truth. In his book "Good to Great" author Jim Collins discussed what he came to call "The Stockdale Paradox" in the context of whether a company had the courage to face the reality of their future.
This paradox arose during the research for this book as they interviewed many in company managements around the nation. This came from Admiral James Bond Stockdale’s experience as a POW in North Viet Nam where those that survived were separated from those that caved in by the ability to face the brutal reality of their situation.
The fundamental issue described in "Good to Great" is that if a company doesn't have the courage to face the true reality of their situation, no matter how good, or grim, it might be, that company will never do better than so-so.
2nd – Experience in the world working with people such that one understands just how enormous and transcending their spirit can be. In my time as a skipper, I saw that people are capable of enormous work and courage. The trick was how to lead them in a way that encouraged them to strength instead of timidity.
3rd – A sense of humility that acknowledges that one has attained high stature in part because of many around them that helped along the way. This is another aspect of skippering: the humility that comes from seeing another skipper fall prey to the vagaries of the world and realizing"there but for the Grace of God, go I."
I believe that John McCain's background has prepared him well in these aspects of leadership. He has worked with staffs in his House and Senate tenure. He has seen people in their heights of courage in Hanoi. Finally, he has served as a skipper and understands in his heart the meaning of: "There but for the Grace of God, go I."
Wesley Clark's statement about John McCain's preparation for Commander-in-Chief and the decision-making and authority involved in this pinnacle of power was simply self-serving and short-sighted. It can only have been made with a sense that it might garner some political prestige or favor.
The statement should simply be ignored as the ramblings of a man recalling his past greatness.