Leadership in a time of crisis...

I don’t post political commentary on LinkedIn and this is NOT a political post. This is a post about leadership and what true leadership looks like.?

As a Marine Corps veteran who once was tasked with notifying the next of kin when their loved one had died in the service of their country… I am appalled at the total lack of accountability currently on display in Washington.?

In a discussion several years ago with an Ivy League colleague, I was surprised when I shared the following anecdotal story about one of the greatest leaders of the 20th Century - General George C. Marshall. I was surprised because my colleague did not know who General Marshall was!

Here’s a primer on a true leader…

General George C. Marshall, United States Army, Official Portrait, 1946

Marshall was a five-star general who later became Secretary of State and the architect of the "Marshall Plan" which provided the blueprint for the rebuilding of Europe and Japan after World War II. He was once described by President Harry S. Truman as the greatest soldier in American history. After World War II, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill called Marshall the true organizer of Allied victory. For his contributions to world peace he was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1953.

When America entered World War I in April 1917, Marshall was still a junior officer. America’s entry into the war was a chaotic and disorganized time for the U.S. Army and its leaders were under enormous pressure to quickly commit untrained and poorly equipped American soldiers into combat. Marshall began the war as a captain on the staff of the 1st Division responsible for operations and training. On 3 October 1917, General John J. Pershing, the commander of the American Expeditionary Force and one of the most famous soldiers in the world, showed up to observe training by units of the 1st Division. For a variety of reasons, Pershing was unhappy, and he forcefully expressed himself by criticizing the division commander in front of the entire division staff.

Pershing and Marshall (France, 1918)

Marshall was convinced that General Pershing had formed an erroneous opinion of the combat readiness of the division and had unfairly judged Marshall’s commanding officer. He started to explain matters to Pershing, who impatiently turned away from him. The young Captain Marshall then grabbed the seasoned four-star general by the arm and forced Pershing to listen to his justifications. After Pershing left, the division staff assumed that Marshall would be relieved from his position. Instead, the opposite happened. In his future visits, Pershing sought out Marshall and after the war, Marshall ended up as Pershing’s aide.

Twenty years later, in the fall of 1938, the threat of war was growing once again in Europe, and President Franklin D. Roosevelt called a White House meeting with key members of his administration. He wanted to discuss his proposed defense plan, which primarily consisted of a rapid and dramatic expansion of American military airpower. Marshall had been the deputy Army Chief of Staff for less than one month and, as a relatively new one-star general, was one of the lowest ranking people in the President’s office that day. During the course of the meeting, President Roosevelt asked each attendee if they agreed with his proposal. All the attendees voiced agreement except Marshall who flatly (but respectfully) disagreed with President Roosevelt’s proposal. The other attendees noted that Marshall’s disagreement caused the President to become visibly startled and after the meeting adjourned, many of those present made it clear that they thought Marshall had effectively ended his career.

FDR and Marshall, 1943

Five months later, in a move that completely surprised most of Washington, FDR asked Marshall to be the next Army Chief of Staff.

These two episodes say a great deal about Marshall. In wartime, physical courage is the relatively common type of courage that causes many soldiers to risk their personal safety on the battlefield. In contrast, ethical courage is a much rarer type of courage- but this is what Marshall demonstrated when, as a junior officer, he chastised a far superior officer in public, and later in his career disagreed with a U.S. President simply because he cared so passionately about his duty.

The Founders - many of whom were veterans of the French and Indian War and The Revolutionary War - never foresaw “career politicians” such as we have today.?

Most currently in office have never served in uniform and have never been “leaders.”?Sadly, many career military leaders serving today – while I don’t dispute or doubt their physical courage - do not demonstrate the “ethical” courage George Marshall embodied.

At present, my thoughts and prayers are with my fellow veterans and those veterans of time “in-country” who suffered both physical and emotional trauma.

I am also praying for those Gold Star families whose loved one made the ultimate sacrifice as well as those Americans and Afghan allies still in harm’s way.

Semper Fi and God Bless us… everyone!

If you’re struggling with what is transpiring in Afghanistan, please know that it’s OK to NOT be OK! ?Call your buddies to check in!

If you are a Veteran in crisis or concerned about one, connect with our caring, qualified responders for confidential help. Many of them are Veterans themselves.

Call 800-273-8255 and select 1

Text 838255

Start a confidential chat

Call TTY if you have hearing loss

800-799-4889

Get more resources at VeteransCrisisLine.net

About the author - Paul McBride is a former Marine, and RVP at ZeOmega Population Health Management Software a leader in Care Management and Medicare Advantage software. He is also the Founder and President of American Military Society Press. You can contact him at [email protected]

Sources: The Strategy Bridge, Michael J. Hennelly, January 11, 2018, USMA Website, The George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies.