Daniel Engber (aka “Explainer”) at Slate asks: How many retired generals are there? and provides the following:
It’s hard to get good numbers, but the Explainer estimates that about 4,700 general officers are enjoying their retirement in the United States right now. (For a detailed look at the data and the Explainer’s calculations, click here.) That means the six former generals who stepped forward to criticize Rumsfeld make up about one-tenth of 1 percent of the total community.
And he goes on to bolster the point I have been making for two days now (here and here) that the idea of retired generals speaking out politically is not that radical:
Retired generals pipe up all the time. In March, five of them wrote a letter to the Supreme Court asking that Justice Scalia recuse himself from the Hamdan case. In January, nine generals and three admirals banded together as the “Retired Generals Against Torture” and sent an open letter to the Senate judiciary committee. During campaign season, retired generals issue small-group political endorsements.
So, again, I don’t really get the “they’re threatening civilian control of the military” argument.
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I agree with your main point, but the pure number of the generals is tremendously misleading.
First, none of the seven that have come out against Rumsfeld are below two star generals. I am sure this takes away at least half of the generals mentioned at Slate.
Second, two of the generals are three star generals and one is a four star general. The number of retired and alive four star generals is probably 10%, at most, of the retired and alive generals.
Third, and this is the big one, of the 4700 or so retired generals only one was head of the marines and head of US Central Command during the Iraq war. Only one commanded the training of Iraqi forces until 2024. Only one commanded the first infantry division in Iraq.
These aren’t generals that weren’t active in the present Gulf War (which easily 95% of the total number are).
Again, your main point may be correct, but the use of the numbers is misleading, at best.
Comment by Bill K — Monday, April 17, 2024 @ 12:57 pm
All fair enough.
Comment by Dr. Steven Taylor — Monday, April 17, 2024 @ 1:24 pm
Outspoken Retired Generals and Civilian Control, Redux
Kevin Drum, reflecting on the recent spate of retired generals speaking out both both for and against Donald Rumsfeld’s being replaced as SECDEF, remarks, “Regardless of whether or not we agree with the generals’ criticism, I think it…
Trackback by Outside The Beltway | OTB — Monday, April 17, 2024 @ 2:27 pm
Kevin Drum has revisited the subject.
When I read your arguments, I agree with you. But then I read his arguments, and I agree with him. Since I read him last, he now has the upper-hand.
I guess you need to post again.
Comment by LaurenceB — Tuesday, April 18, 2024 @ 8:25 pm