War, terrorism and leadership provide topics for McKiernan
Focused on the war in Iraq and the performance of U.S. troops in the conflict, McKiernan’s remarks evoked three standing ovations from a crowd that included Gov. Mark Warner, state senators and delegates and other guests of the College and Colonial Williamsburg. The recipient of an honorary doctorate at Charter Day, the three-star general is commander of coalition ground troops in Operation Iraqi Freedom and a member of the William and Mary class of 1972.
“You have never had a better Army. I was not worried about what our soldiers and Marines would do once they crossed over into Iraq,” said McKiernan. “Two things separate our soldiers from those of other nations. First are their values, and the second is that our junior people are empowered to lead.”
Even those in the lowest ranks are trained to seize the initiative, the general said. To illustrate the point, he told of reviewing a citation for a Silver Star presented to PFC Kyle Turner. During the drive to Baghdad, Turner’s position came under intense fire, and his sergeant was killed. The young soldier took the point and led the defense of his position. After the battle, Turner told his commanding officer, “Everyone acted more bravely then myself.”
“Thank God, we have soldiers like Kyle Turner,” said McKiernan to prolonged applause. The general went on to observe that soldiers like Turner are as indispensable as ever in today’s world, perhaps even more so than in the past. To prove his point, McKiernan cited statistics that the U.S. Army deployed only 11 times between the end of World War II and the fall of the Iron Curtain. Since then, however, the Army has deployed 40 times.
Q: What is the situation today in Iraq?
McKiernan: The action in Afghanistan and Iraq are two campaigns of a larger war-a global war on terrorism. In Iraq we are approaching a very critical time in this campaign, and that critical time is determined by transference of authority and responsibility to Iraqis and Iraqi institutions and Iraqi sovereignty.
The campaign to date has been much more successful than is commonly reported in the media. But make no mistake; it's going to be a long campaign. It's not a six-month proposition; it's not a one-year proposition; it's a campaign in which we now have to help the Iraqis create institutions that they have not had for the last 30 years. They haven't had a judicial system that was just. They haven't had a police force that actually did what we would consider police functions.
We can remove Saddam Hussein from power in 16 days with joint war-fighting, which is what we did. But now the transition to viable Iraqi institutions and to a secure environment in Iraq with Iraqis in charge is not a 16-day proposition. How long that takes I don't know. There are a lot of influences in Iraq today that don't want us to succeed and will fight and create terrorist acts to try to make us not succeed. I'm not worried in the least that our military forces will do what they need to do. What I do hope is that we have the national will to see this campaign through.
Q: What is the state of the military today?
McKiernan: Today's military is a very, very honorable profession. It is a well-respected institution in our country and has been for many years. Young men and women who are in college ought to take a look at things like ROTC, national service and opportunities to serve their nation because you can't have them both ways. You can't talk about individual freedoms that we enjoy as Americans and yet not be willing to contribute to preserve those.
Q: One of your predecessors as commander of the U.S. Third Army was Gen. George Patton, who was known for his brash style. The U.S. News has called you the "quiet commander." Have leadership styles changed in the 60 years since World War II?
McKiernan: I think what makes a competent leader has not changed from World War II to today. The environment has certainly changed, but the skill set necessary to command formations of soldiers and Marines-whether U.S. or coalition-are essentially the same. The information age makes leaders so much more accessible to the public. Patton didn't give press interviews and wasn't on television. So his charisma and his style were recorded and read by people. I think leaders today are engaged publicly with the media, and so it's a different environment.
Q: Military analysts have credited your skill at leading multi-national forces for the success of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Where did you learn those skills?
McKiernan: I've worked in a coalition-operational environment for probably the last 10-to-12 years. There was a time when I was in Bosnia when we had 35 different nations under the command of the headquarters that I worked in, and so you get used to building coalition teams. There's a full spectrum of what nations bring in terms of capability and freedom of action, and so you have to get used to working in that sort of environment.
Q: How did your education contribute to your success in the military?
McKiernan: When you graduate from an undergraduate institution, you come away with some socialization that has taken you from being a teenager, if you will, to a young adult. If you come away with an understanding of some intellectual discipline and understanding of what doors are open to you for the rest of your life to learn things from, I'm not sure it gets any better than that. I was like most college students. I really never knew what I should major in, and I didn't know what I would do when I graduated from college. But the most valuable benefits were transitioning to become an adult and learning some intellectual discipline.
Q: What things do you remember most about your experience here?
McKiernan: I was in the Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) program from 1968 to 1972. It was not a popular choice on campuses in those days. But I was from a military family, and so I thought I wanted to stay with that and try out the military. Like most college students, it took me a while to get myself disciplined to operate on my own away from home, and after struggling the first couple of years as a student, I got my act together. That's probably when I really enjoyed the learning experience at William and Mary.
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