By Richard A. Serrano and David S. Cloud
Los Angeles Times
President Barack Obama on Monday nominated Army Gen. Martin Dempsey as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, putting the finishing touches on his new national security team and starting what the administration hopes will be a gradual U.S. withdrawal from the war in Afghanistan.
In a Rose Garden presentation, Obama said he was moving Dempsey from Army chief of staff to the higher post overseeing all Pentagon and military operations, selecting him in part because of his past two tours helping lead the war in Iraq.
Dempsey took over as Army chief of staff in April.
“Marty, your tenure as chief may go down as one of the shortest in Army history. But it’s your lifetime of accomplishment that brings us here today,” Obama said.
If confirmed by the Senate, Dempsey will replace Adm. Mike Mullen, who is retiring when his term expires in September.
As Obama’s senior military adviser, Dempsey must balance the administration’s desire for the Afghanistan troop withdrawal with the Pentagon’s desire to keep as many troops there as long as possible to preserve fragile security gains. Obama has said he will start the withdrawal in July, and he expects all U.S. forces to be gone and the Afghan government to take over by 2014.
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