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| Africa North |
| Obama Nominates Rodriguez to Africa Command Chief |
| 2012-10-22 |
| President Obama has nominated Army General David M. Rodriguez to succeed Army General Carter F. Ham as the commander of U.S. Africa Command, Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta said, October 18, 2012. U.S. Africa Command is the newest combatant command, and its headquarters is in Stuttgart, Germany. The command encompasses all of Africa and its adjacent waters except for Egypt. The Senate must confirm Rodriguez, who currently is commander of U.S. Army Forces Command at Fort Bragg, N.C. "He has served in a variety of key leadership roles on the battlefield," Panetta said in announcing the nomination. Rodriguez was the first commander of the International Security Assistance Force Joint Command, the corps-level command in Afghanistan. He was the commander during the surge into Afghanistan, "and was a key architect of the successful campaign plan that we are now implementing," Panetta said. Ham has served as the Africa Command chief since March 2011. "Under his leadership, Africom has played a very central role in some very important missions," the secretary said. "From the NATO campaign in Libya that led to the fall of Gadhafi to successful counterterrorism efforts in Somalia [and] Yemen to efforts we are now involved in in Nigeria and Mali and elsewhere, General Ham has really brought Africom into a very pivotal role in that challenging region." The nation is "deeply grateful for his outstanding service," he said. Question -- is this a "normal" time for transition? Does Command serve a "term?" Me as a civilian, finds the timing interesting.... |
| Posted by:Sherry |
| #4 Does Command serve a "term?" My other explanation wouldn't take. So short answer term=tour in military parlance. Yes, there is a time bracket to sit in a billet. Too little = too much organizational disruption by new guys. Too much = locking people out of jobs and promotions down the rank structure. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2012-10-22 21:31 |
| #3 Fall back position. Pulling out of Afghanistan. |
| Posted by: Glavilet the Scantily Clad6504 2012-10-22 09:16 |
| #2 Yes, General Ham was only a temp replacement. I fear, dear readers, that what we have here is yet another excellent example of affirmative action gone mad. The fellow General Ham replaced suffered a lengthy investigation while tucked away in a Pentagon do-nothing post. Seems he had a few.... spending irregularities while touring Africa. The Army's not so little black secret. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2012-10-22 07:07 |
| #1 Was Ham just there until they could find and get up to speed the replacement for the first guy who was relieved for cause? |
| Posted by: Penguin 2012-10-22 00:58 |