William Fallon Steps Down

Do you remember when military officials who were opposed to invading Iraq were resigning over the invasion and occupation of the country? Eric Shinseki should ring a bell who resigned in June of 2003, shortly after the occupation began. He testified prior to the invasion that it would take several hundred thousand troops to successfully occupy post-war Iraq. Anything less would result in the country falling to sectarian war he claimed. The administration said he was "wildly off the mark" and went ahead with their invasion without weighing the testimony he had made before congress.

In an article in Esquire Magazine which was released last week entitled, The Man Between War and Peace, William Fallon was described as the one person on this planet who has the power to stop a war with Iran. Fallon has been a critic of the administration and has made public statement saying that they're buildup for a war with Iran is reckless.

Today it is William Fallon, head of U.S. Central Command, who announced his resignation which will become official after March 31st, 2008. It is without doubt that Fallon has been pressured into this decision.

In his resignation, Fallon had the following to say, "Recent press reports suggesting a disconnect between my views and the president’s policy objectives have become a distraction at a critical time and hamper efforts in the Centcom region and although I don’t believe there have ever been any differences about the objectives of our policy in the Central Command area of responsibility, the simple perception that there is makes it difficult for me to effectively serve America’s interests there."

This is not good news for the American people. What the ramifications of losing a man who was capable of and willing to stop a war with Iran by a war-crazed administration is yet to be seen.