Robert Gates to the rescue

What about Bob? Is it fair to paint him as some kind of "Bush 41 Fireman" dispatched in to rescue George W? I don't know, but Gates is certainly an interesting character who possesses a fairly typical Americana life story without the stereotypical silver spoon republican upbringing.

He's got some baggage--lefty hit blogs are already gearing up to highlight his 1991 Senate confirmation hearings and his alleged involvement with passing intelligence to Saddam during the Iran-Iraq war. That's fine, but their failure to mention the participation of the Soviets and French, who were also knee-deep in Iraq, always exposes them as partisans. Note to the nutroots--we weren't the only country concerned about tinhorns controlling 3/4ths of the world's light sweet crude, and rightfully so.

Here's a short archive of Mr. Gates' possible positions. His antiterror philosophy more resembles John Kerry than Bush. Perhaps that, along with the fact he's no neocon and got along well with university types has apparently made him palatable to the democrats to the degree they'll not complain too loudly about a confirmation in the lame duck session.

His military resume is pretty short. Problem? Not necessarily, says Brad Warthen. Civilian control of the military is still a good thing.

But his history with Saddam and the first Gulf War deserves some attention. I found it interesting that Mr. Gates seems to deny there was ever any "threat letter" sent to Saddam in 1991. That's not what James Baker told NPR. Second, I found this 1989 New York Times story about Saddam's budding bioweapons program interesting. Keep in mind Mr. Gates has been a spy for most of his career.

Everyone has a theory about this. The conspiratorial version seems to suggest his arrival isn't a rescue more than an intervention. In other words, it's the equivalent of Sandy Berger's trip to the National Archives (only with better access) with the ultimate goal being to protect the Bush 41 legacy.

A more believable theory is that Gates is smart. Very smart. He understands the Iraq problem better than most and will advise the cabinet accordingly, He isn't an ideologue, and his appointment might even signal a decreasing war threat across the greater Middle East, which would certainly help any possible negotiations, not to mention having a positive effect on the world markets. Oh, and he also knows a lot about the Russians.