Leadership

Lt. Gen. John Kelly: ‘I don’t know why they hate us, and I don’t care’

By Dan Lamothe on August 30, 2012 Afghanistan, General officers, Infantry, Iraq, Leadership

Lt. Gen. John Kelly will soon become the new four-star commander at U.S. Southern Command, a post that will require him to oversee the fight against drug trafficking, natural disasters, humanitarian crises and cyber warfare in central and South America. As the Long War Journal points out, Kelly delivered a powerful 30-minute speech on Tuesday to the American Legion National Convention in Indianapolis. He addresses the extremist nature of the threat the U.S. faces from terrorists and how difficult it is for a family to deal with the loss of a loved one in a war zone — something he…

Remembering Henry Black, 7th sergeant major of the Marine Corps

By Dan Lamothe on August 29, 2012 History and heritage, Korea, Leadership, The Sgt. Major of the Marine Corps

The country lost a legend on Friday with the death of Sgt. Maj. Henry Black, the service’s oldest surviving sergeant major of the Marine Corps. As noted in an obituary I wrote Monday, Black served in combat in both Korea and Vietnam, even earning a Silver Star for heroism as a junior Marine. It’s his leadership that Marines miss the most, however. Retired Sgt. Maj. Carlton Kent, the Corps’ 16th sergeant major of the Marine Corps, recalled Black as a father figure and mentor when I spoke with him Monday. Sgt. Maj. Mike Barrett, the Corps’ current top enlisted Marine,…

Behind the Cover: MARSOC expands

By Dan Lamothe on August 27, 2012 Behind the Cover, General officers, Leadership, MARSOC

It has been more than six years since Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command was established, giving the the Corps its own component in the special operations world. Its development has not been without its headaches, but it continues in earnest. This week’s Marine Corps Times breaks down what’s next for MARSOC and its Marines. A variety of changes have occurred in recruitment and training, and the command continues to add new teams of special operators as it expands. The desired steady state: A mature force that includes all of the enablers needed, plus experienced operators who know how to…

Gen. Joseph Dunford frontrunner to lead Afghan war, report says

By Dan Lamothe on August 22, 2012 Afghanistan, General officers, Infantry, Leadership

Could another Marine soon be leading the war in Afghanistan? A report in The Wall Street Journal this morning suggests that the frontrunner to replace Gen. John Allen as the next head of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan is none other than Gen. Joseph Dunford, the assistant commandant of the Marine Corps. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta reportedly recommended him to the White House for the job. From the story: Defense officials said Gen. Dunford is a firm supporter of the Afghan war strategy of Mr. Obama, who has called for continued drawdowns of U.S. forces through the end…

Commandant, sergeant major visit Marines in Afghanistan

By Dan Lamothe on July 18, 2012 Afghanistan, General officers, Infantry, Leadership, The CMC, The Sgt. Major of the Marine Corps

Sometimes, the boss comes long ways to check in on his people. That was the case yesterday in Afghanistan, where Commandant Gen. Jim Amos and Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps Mike Barrett dropped in on six bases and outposts, fielding questions from Marines and thanking them for their service. There are at least two accounts of their travels published. A Marine Corps news release said the brass visited Marines at Camp Leatherneck, Forward Operating Base Payne, FOB Geronimo, FOB Jackson, FOB Zeebrugge and Combat Outpost Shir Ghazi. That means they traveled from Kajaki district in northern Helmand all the…

A look at Marine Gen. John Allen’s ISAF coin

By Dan Lamothe on July 17, 2012 Afghanistan, General officers, Leadership

Challenge coins have become a prominent part of military culture, honoring exemplary service and dedication to duty. For that reason, it seemed relevant to point out the following: That’s the coin of Marine Gen. John Allen, the top commander in Afghanistan. The photo was posted online by the military along with this story. Here’s the flip-side of the coin, if you will:

Behind the Cover: Amos reclaims reputation of Marine Corps

By Gina Cavallaro on June 4, 2012 Behind the Cover, Leadership, Marines

Bad behavior, bad publicity and bad timing on it all has got the commandant on the road to get Marines to clean up their acts. It’s called the “heritage brief” and it doesn’t sound like any speech you’ve ever heard from Gen. Amos; a deep dive into recent horrible news headlines and a frank discussion of the abhorrent behavior that led to them. The brief is also a sort of remember-who-you-are session, something Amos called a “family discussion” rather than an “ass-chewing.” So far, only staff NCOs and officers have seen this brief, but there will soon be a video…

Behind the cover: Commandant calls out complacent leaders, tells Marines to quit embarrassing the Corps

By Andrew deGrandpre on April 30, 2012 Behind the Cover, Leadership, The CMC

The Marine Corps’ top general wants an end to the monkey business that, since the start of 2012, has cast a steady, unflattering light on an institution defined in no small part by the pride it exhibits in being a disciplined, moral fighting force. “We are allowing our standards to erode,” Gen. Jim Amos, the service’s 35th commandant, laments in an internal memo distributed to all of his generals, commanding officers and sergeants major. Known as a White Letter, the sharply worded missive comes in response to “a number of recent widely publicized incidents” involving Marines misbehaving abroad. Complacent leadership…

New Marine commanders take over in Afghanistan

By Dan Lamothe on March 1, 2012 Afghanistan, Camp Leatherneck, Leadership

It’s that time of the year again: Transition is coming in Afghanistan. The Marine Corps is in the process of swapping out the command elements in Helmand province, a rotation that will put new general officers in the driver’s seat. Maj. Gen. John Toolan, commander of Regional Command Southwest and II Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward), will be replaced March 12 by Maj. Gen. Charles Gurganus, Toolan said. The subordinate command elements in Helmand province already have made the transition. The new commanders are: Maj. Gen. Charles Gurganus Commanding general, Regional Command Southwest and I Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward) Gurganus will…

General: ‘Inside threat’ from Afghan troops takes courage to face

By Dan Lamothe on March 1, 2012 Afghanistan, General officers, Leadership

In next week’s Marine Corps Times, we’ll have a package of stories highlighting what’s coming this summer for Marines in Afghanistan. Much of it comes from an interview I did Friday with Maj. Gen. John Toolan, the top commander in Helmand and Nimroz provinces, where 17,000 Marines are deployed. We covered a lot of ground, some of which appeared in this breaking news story last week. Then I asked the general if there was anything else he wanted to touch on. Not surprisingly, he said he was proud of the troops under his command. But he also added a candid…

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