A Massachusetts Military Man Masterfully Manages in an Apolitical Manner
I believe the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley, is committed to the United States of America and his loyalty is to the Constitution. He remains a steady presence as the country peacefully transitions power after a divisive and contentious election cycle. My guess is that it was not General Milley’s intention to appear anything but apolitical while walking with President Trump into Lafayette Square during the June 2002 unrest in the nation’s capital. Given the environment of the area around the White House that day, the President probably assumed that General Milley’s presence would project resolve and provide a calming effect.
This is not uncommon for leaders — when I attended events with politicians where tensions could heighten, I was asked to wear my uniform. I remember being asked to wear my uniform for a town hall event in Iowa during flood season, where Congressman Dave Loebsack and I addressed the public on the federal flood response to affected communities in his congressional district. Why the uniform? Because most civilians have a strong trust in our nation’s military. Our military leaders are sworn to be apolitical and loyal to the principles in United States Constitution.
I do not claim to know much about General Milley other than what is in his leader biography, but from the interactions I have had with him I believe he is a man of strong character, an engaging personality, and a good sense of humor. He is very intelligent, but not in a “I am the smartest guy in the room” way. My first encounter with him was in 2013 at the National Training Center in Fort Irwin, California. I was serving as the senior engineer observer/coordinator/trainer for a rotation with 2nd Brigade, 10th Mountain Division. Then Major General Milley was the Commanding General of 10th Mountain Division. He viewed training events and attended several after-action reviews along with his Deputy Commander then Brigadier General Richard Clarke (General Clarke is now the Commanding General of Special Operation Command).
One hot, dry afternoon we had a meeting at a site out “in the box” at Fort Irwin. I walked into the area at the same time as another Soldier who was extremely dusty, looked a little worn out, and obviously had something on his mind. We entered the facility and he walked over and sat by himself. I assessed that this man was not having a good day, so I was about to walk over and chat with him just to see if he was okay. Then, two young officers ran to him and said “Sir, we didn’t know you had arrived, we’ll get you up to speed on what’s going on.” I asked a colleague who that guy was and he said “that’s the CG, General Milley.” A few minutes later he moved to the front of the room, full of energy and engaging the participants. I still could not see his name tag or rank because his uniform was so dusty, but that was my first encounter with him.
The next encounter was in 2014, during a hail and farewell event at Major General John Nicholson’s house at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. This event was Major General Nicholson’s farewell party to the division, but also a welcome for new officers to the 82nd Airborne Division staff, of which I was one. It was a festive event, wall-to-wall packed with people and a lot of activity. I had been chatting with a few senior officers near the back area of the main room in the Nicholson’s home. A gentleman came up, tapped me on the shoulder, and asked me what I did in the 82nd Airborne Division. One of the senior officers I was chatting with, Major General K.K. Chinn, told this gentleman I was the new division engineer and had previously served in the 20th Engineer Brigade, one of the units under Major General Chinn’s command. The gentleman said “Hey, go ahead and get closer to the front” and then he ushered me close to where General Nicholson was speaking.
I found out later that the friendly gentleman was the new commanding general of Forces Command, General Mark Milley. This is a man who didn’t know me at all (or at least remember our encounters at the National Training Center, and to be fair I did not recognize him either because he was in civilian clothes) but he was kind enough to approach me in a crowded room, talk with me, and make sure that I was properly recognized into my new organization.
Another encounter was in 2015, where I was assigned as an investigating officer for the death of a paratrooper who lost his life during an airborne training exercise. This investigation was a big deal because Fort Bragg had recently experienced a high-profile investigation dealing with a senior officer death during an airborne event. My commanding general, then Major General Richard Clarke, who had assumed command from Major General Nicholson, assigned me as the division’s lead investigator for this tragic event. During the investigation I was tasked to provide General Milley an in-person update at Forces Command Headquarters at Fort Bragg. This was during an Army senior leader event at Fort Bragg, so I was put on “stand by” until General Milley could get a break during this event for an update.
After waiting around a few hours, I received news that General Milley was good with the read-ahead packet provided to him on the status of the investigation, and he did not want me to have to wait around anymore for a break to discuss it in person. For anyone who has been around the Army and its senior leadership, this never happens. In most cases, the leader has no idea that you are even waiting and even then, you are just another uniform that briefs on one of the many topics they see in a day. I believe Major General Clarke influenced his decision to not have me wait any longer, but it shows the trust General Milley had in our organization to provide him a credible update and that he cared about not wasting my time.
Suffice it to say that I believe he is a man of strong integrity, one who is respectful and considerate of all sides, and one who can see multiple perspectives of an issue. I am concerned when someone in his position is characterized as having a political stance. I am concerned when someone of his stature is associated with any political narrative. I am more concerned when false narratives across the political spectrum misrepresent a senior military officer for political gain. As Americans, we all should be.
