Joseph Dunford

Gen. Joseph Dunford, Afghanistan war commander, profiled by Boston Globe

By Dan Lamothe on August 6, 2013 Afghanistan, General officers

Gen. Joseph Dunford has a father who fought in Korea as a Marine, loves his hometown Boston Red Sox and was lured to join the Marine Corps after seeing a recruiting poster at college. Those are among the details published in a new Boston Globe story about the Marine general who leads the war in Afghanistan. Dunford, a Boston native, was profiled by the newspaper on Sunday, and met with a Globe reporter in Kabul. The story is short on details about the war, but highlights the general’s rise from South Boston to four-star general. He played a fair amount…

Dunford outlines heavy casualties to Afghan forces

By Dan Lamothe on June 6, 2013 Afghanistan, General officers, Infantry

Recent news coverage of the war in Afghanistan has zeroed in on the fact that as U.S. force draw down there and shift to advising roles, Afghan forces have been engaged in heavy combat with the Taliban. U.S. commanders have acknowledged several times that Afghan forces have taken heavy losses as a result, but rarely have provided numbers that clarify how serious the situation is. There’s no doubt after Wednesday, however: they’re losing dozens of troops each week, including 104 in one week recently, said Gen. Joseph Dunford, the top U.S. commander, to reporters in Belgium on Wednesday. “The numbers…

Gen. John Allen quietly retires from the Marine Corps

By Dan Lamothe on April 30, 2013 Afghanistan, Commandant, General officers, Leadership, Washington

Gen. John Allen formally stepped into retirement Monday, moving on after more than 30 years in the Marine Corps with a ceremony at the Naval Academy. Allen already had been described as “retired” numerous times, but he was still on active duty through this week, as the Wall Street Journal pointed out yesterday. Likewise, Gen. James Mattis has turned over his post as the head of U.S. Central Command to Army Gen. Lloyd Austin, but Mattis won’t formally retire until June. Marine Corps Times profiled him last month. Allen’s actual retirement ceremony seems to have been conducted outside the limelight.…

Could Gen. Jim Amos step down as commandant to head NATO?

By Dan Lamothe on February 20, 2013 General officers, The CMC, Washington

The announcement yesterday that Marine Gen. John Allen will retire instead of becoming the supreme allied commander of NATO immediately raises a question: Who will head to Brussels instead? Foreign Policy reported on its E-Ring blog that names being floated for the NATO job include Marine Gen. Gen. Jim Amos, commandant of the Marine Corps. The Daily Beast had a similar report last week, before Allen’s decision to retire was announced. Could Amos really move on, though? A shift like that would be a shock in the Corps, which Amos has led since October 2010 through a time filled with…

5 questions to answer about Gens. David Petraeus and John Allen

By Dan Lamothe on November 13, 2012 Afghanistan, Capitol Hill, General officers, Washington

And so, it’s come to this. The top commander in Afghanistan, Gen. John Allen, is now firmly ensnared in retired Gen. David Petraeus’ sex scandal. It’s widely reported this morning that Allen’s career is in jeopardy for “inappropriate communications” to Jill Kelley, the Tampa socialite whose complaints to an FBI agent about anonymous harassing email led to the revelation that Petraeus had an affair with his biographer, Paula Broadwell. Already, that’s a lot to process. Allen’s involvement in the scandal, however hazy, led to the decision to table his Senate confirmation hearing Thursday for what had been his presumed next…

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…

Commandant on Dunford-to-Afghanistan speculation: ‘I like right where he is’

By Dan Lamothe on August 23, 2012 Afghanistan, General officers, Infantry, The CMC

Commandant Gen. Jim Amos met with reporters today at the Pentagon, leading me to ask him about the reports this week that his assistant commandant, Gen. Joseph Dunford, is the frontrunner to become the next commander of the war in Afghanistan. It’s one of those classically awkward situations where journalists feel required to ask a question, knowing it’s unlikely a full answer can be provided. Asked what he would do to replace Dunford, Amos called him “one of the finest officers who have ever worn this cloth,” but declined to go much farther. “He’s been a teammate of mine since…

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…

2/6 Marines take over for 1/9 in Nawa, Afghanistan

By Dan Lamothe on January 4, 2012 Afghanistan, Infantry

The Ready Battalion is back in action. Second Battalion, 6th Marines, out of Camp Lejeune, N.C., has replaced 1st Battalion, 9th Marines, in Afghanistan and is now patrolling Nawa district in central Helmand. Its a mission that will likely be complicated by the Corps’ pending drawdown in Afghanistan — Nawa is one of the next three districts in Helmand in which the security has been identified for transition this spring to Afghan control. The Walking Dead of 1/9 were formally replaced by 2/6 in a ceremony at Forward Operating Base Geronimo late last month, but were still in theater through…

Marines likely to retain four 4-star generals

By Dan Lamothe on May 26, 2011 Afghanistan, General officers, Leadership

With news quickly spreading that Army Gen. Martin Dempsey has likely been selected to become the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, it’s time to make a prediction: Even with Marine Gen. James Cartwright likely retiring by the end of the summer, the military will likely retain four four-star Marine generals. That much seems obvious, even as speculation swirls over who will replace Cartwright as JCS vice chairman. No Marines are believed to be in serious contention for the four-star position, which Cartwright has filled since Aug. 31, 2007. Instead, rumors have centered mostly on Air Force Gen.…

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