Dunford continues to blaze a trail to the top

Long time readers will remember the Marine General "Fighting Joe" Dunford from the past several years of posts. In June 2010 when General Amos was nominated to replace General Conway as Commandant, I expressed the opinion that Dunford, then a 3-star and CG of I MEF, may have been a better choice. He had been elevated from 1 to 3-star rank quickly [never actually holding 2-star grade] and his combat experience in Afghanistan was both exemplary and proved he wasn't just a politician but perhaps he was too young [at 55] to be elevated to the USMC's #1 spot just yet.

Dunford did however assume the Vice Commandant's position and a fourth star that October. Exactly two years later in October 2012 I blogged when he was nominated to command the ISAF which he did in February 2013 replacing General Allen and then last June when the man was nominated for Commandant, a position he assumed last October replacing General Amos.

Now only in his 7th month as Commandant, President Obama has unexpectedly nominated Dunford to replace Army General Martin Dempsey as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff when his tour ends in the Autumn. I would have expected Army Chief of Staff General Raymond T. Odinero or Navy Adm. Samuel Locklear, Commander, US Pacific Command to have been tapped for the billet but it looks like they're retiring.

General Dempsey said: “I've known General Dunford for almost half of his 39 years of service,... He is a phenomenal, combat-tested leader and a man of integrity, courage and humility." He's known for keeping his cool under pressure, Marine Gen. James "Mad Dog" Mattis, former CENTCOM commander said he once saw a grenade pass over Dunford's Humvee in Iraq and explode 100 yards away. "He barely glanced up and then went right back to writing his orders."

Senate confirms new US Military Leadership

The United States Senate cleared a staggering backlog of routine military officer promotions and confirmed pending presidential nominations for some top officers this week.

Chief among these was the confirmation of General Martin E. Dempsey [right] as the next Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He is now confirmed to replace retiring Admiral Mike Mullen in September as the US Military's top dog.

The Senate also confirmed General Raymond T. Odierno to replace Dempsey as Chief of Staff of the Army. Odierno oversaw the disestablishment of US Joint Forces Command at a ceremony yesterday in Suffolk, Va. shuttering a 6000-strong command on the advice of former SecDef Robert Gates to save millions of dollars.

Admiral Jonathan Greenert was confirmed as the next Chief of Naval Operations to replace retiring Admiral Gary Roughead in September and Air Force General William Fraser III as Commander, U.S. Transportation Command.

The most urgent appointment was that of Admiral James A. "Sandy" Winnefeld Jr., who not 48 hours after his Senate confirmation, was sworn in as the 9th Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff yesterday. This followed the vacation of the post by General James E. "Hoss" Cartwright [left] who had his retirement ceremony at the 8th & I, Marine Barracks in Washington D.C. on Wednesday after almost 40 years of service.

Admiral Winnefeld was replaced as Commander of U.S. Northern Command and NORAD by the first Army officer to hold the position, General Charles Jacoby who also received confirmation [and a fourth star] on Tuesday.

Other appointments were not so urgent but were also confirmed before the Senate recessed until after the Labour Day weekend in September. They included confirmations made after approval for UNETIDA appointments were granted by the UN Security Council in July. U.S. Air Force Colonel “Rockets” Thompson, was confirmed as Missile Defence Commander [Northern] replacing Brigadier General “Ballista” Jackson who will now retire in November. U.S Marine Colonel "Whopper" Creedon was confirmed as Director of Intelligence and will assume duties in December. Creedon will be replaced by U.S. Navy Captain “Barnacle” Strakovski as Director of Special Operations.

The 2500+ confirmations were approved by voice vote and without discussion. They put in place one of the single-largest changes in decades in U.S. military leadership that began with Leon Panetta's appointment as Secretary of Defence on July 1.