Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld was at the very least informed in May 2003 by the head of the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) in Iraq, L. Paul
Once in Thrall of ‘the Generals,’ Congress Now Gives the Orders on Military Issues
The shift mirrors broader societal frustrations after two decades of wars, a pervasive problem of sexual assault and harassment of female troops and the exposure of political extremism in the ranks.
Gen. Mark A. Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, preparing to testify before Congress in 2019. The uniformed military successfully pushed back on several significant initiatives by President Trump.Credit.Mark Wilson/Getty Images
May 21, 2021Updated 5:07 p.m. ET
WASHINGTON President Bill Clinton, newly elected and eager to fulfill a central campaign promise, moved in 1993 to end a ban on gay men and women in the military, but he was stymied by senior military officers, who coordinated with a deferential Democratic senator, Sam Nunn of Georgia.