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Wesley Clark – Right After All?

Does Serving in the Military Really Make You a Better President?

A few weeks ago, former General Wesley Clark got himself into some trouble over a careless comment he made in an interview on CBS’s Face the Nation:

Bob Schieffer: Well you, you went so far as to say that you thought John McCain was, quote, and these are your words, “untested and untried,” And I must say I, I had to read that twice, because you’re talking about somebody who was a prisoner of war. He was a squadron commander of the largest squadron in the Navy. He’s been on the Senate Armed Services Committee for lo these many years. How can you say that John McCain is un- untested and untried? General?

GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: Because in the matters of national security policy making, it’s a matter of understanding risk. It’s a matter of gauging your opponents, and it’s a matter of being held accountable. John McCain’s never done any of that in his official positions. I certainly honor his service as a prisoner of war. He was a hero to me and to hundreds of thousands and millions of others in Armed Forces as a prisoner of war. He has been a voice on the Senate Armed Services Committee, and he has traveled all over the world. But he hasn’t held executive responsibility. That large squadron in Air- in the Navy that he commanded, it wasn’t a wartime squadron. He hasn’t been there and ordered the bombs to fall. He hasn’t seen what it’s like when diplomats come in and say, ‘I don’t know whether we’re going to be able to get this point through or not. Do you want to take the risk? What about your reputation? How do we handle it publicly.’ He hasn’t made those calls, Bob.

Bob Schieffer: I have to say, Barack Obama has not had any of those experiences either, nor has he ridden in a fighter plane and gotten shot down. I mean-

GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: Well, I don’t think riding in a fighter plane and getting shot down is a qualification to be President.

As you might imagine, this raised a few eyebrows and more than a few temperatures over at the McCain campaign. But after the initial outrage over General Clark’s statements wore off, I took another look at them and tried to place them in the greater context of the point that he was trying to make. The more I mulled it over, the more it really got me thinking:

What is it about military service that makes someone so qualified to be president?

Seriously, what is it exactly – does the simple act of serving in uniform somehow bestow upon you all knowledge, judgment and experience needed to run the United States of America?

Or is it something more than that – do you have to serve during wartime? Do you have to be in combat? Do you have to earn a Purple Heart? The Silver Star? The Medal of Honor?

At what rank are you sufficiently qualified? Sergeant? Captain? General?

What if you only serve in the National Guard? Does that make you any less qualified?

I ask these questions because I believe they are important to ask, and because I’m not sure how many others have actually asked them. Americans are preparing to pass judgment on one candidate for president based in very large part, if not entirely, on his record of military service to this country. A majority of voters in this country believe that John McCain is the candidate best suited to handle with the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Just what are they basing that evaluation on?

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