Quizzing Robert Gates

Robert M. Gates, President Bush’s nominee to succeed Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, will appear before the Senate Armed Services Committee tomorrow for his confirmation hearing. We asked six defense and foreign-policy experts to tell us what questions the senators should ask.

1) The Next Attack

By William S. Cohen, the secretary of defense from 1997 to 2001.

1. According to the Congressional Budget Office, the Pentagon is underfinancing its procurement program by $53 billion to $121 billion each year for the next several years. What will be your priorities to address this shortfall?

2. Do you agree that our NATO allies other than Britain should be contributing more forces, equipment and training to help secure success in Iraq and Afghanistan? How would you persuade them to do so?

3. Department of Defense intelligence functions and capacities have significantly expanded in recent years. Do you intend to continue, increase or disband them?

4. In view of the predictions that we are likely to experience further terrorist attacks on American soil and that these attacks are likely to be multiple in number and executed nearly simultaneously, do you believe the doctrine of posse comitatus, which prohibits the military from engaging in domestic law enforcement, should be revised?

2) Rights vs Realism

By Samantha Power, a professor at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of "A Problem From Hell: America and the Age of Genocide".

1. You have long been associated with the “realist” view that American policy-makers should not concern themselves with a country’s internal human rights practices. Yet it is now clear that threats to the United States are often fueled by abusive regimes and incubated in failing states. On the other hand, rapid democratization can bring bloodshed, and American support for moderates can undermine their credibility. Given this complexity, what principles should guide American interactions with human rights abusers in the 21st century?

2. American forces are overextended in Iraq; NATO countries are reluctant to send additional troops to Afghanistan to confront the resurgent Taliban; and so many peacekeepers now operate under the United Nations flag that the major troop contributors are becoming exhausted. What will you do to try to convince American allies to assist in stabilizing places that the United States believes are important, but where it cannot or should not itself be present?

3. The Sudanese government is conducting a devastating offensive against civilians in Darfur. Owing to the support of China and the Arab League, Khartoum has felt free to thumb its nose at demands from the United Nations that it allow a large protection force to enter the embattled province. What levers can the Pentagon pull — with Khartoum, with Sudan’s allies or with the rebels in Darfur — to ensure that a robust force gets to the region before tens of thousands more civilians die.

3) Life With the Chiefs

By Donald Kerrick, a former United States Army lieutenant general, deputy national security adviser and assistant to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

1. How will you restore the readiness of an overstressed military, while continuing to transform it in preparation for irregular warfare or for war with countries that may possess weapons of mass destruction?

2. Please discuss your view of the role of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and other senior uniformed military leaders with regard to the secretary of defense and the president. What steps will you take to strengthen civilian-military relations in the Pentagon?

3. What changes in strategy will you make that will enable the military to complete its missions in Iraq and Afghanistan?

4. Looking back, what could we have done at the beginning of the war in Iraq that might have produced a better outcome, and how will you ensure that we never again ask our military to conduct operations that are not well thought out or properly resourced.

4) Handling the Hill

By Melvin Laird, the secretary of defense from 1969 to 1973.

1. Donald Rumsfeld made a mistake in not paying enough attention to members of Congress; listening to them and spending time with them is a crucial part of the secretary’s job. But you will have to appear before 16 Congressional committees. How do you intend to manage your time?

2. Right now the Army is riven with conflict. Top generals retire and immediately start speaking out because they feel they weren’t listened to. The members of National Guard and reserves feel they’ve not been treated well, particularly in terms of replacement equipment; and the regular forces feel they lack sufficient personnel. How do you plan to handle all the dissension within the Army?

3. The National Security Agency, which reports to the secretary of defense, has become embroiled in lawsuits concerning electronic surveillance. These are important public affairs problems that must be handled very carefully. How will you deal with such issues before they get to court? Will you delegate this responsibility or get personally involved?

4. Are you willing to increase the military’s personnel budget so that those who serve in the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps are paid salaries at least comparable to what they might make in similar civilian jobs?

5) You and Tehran

By Danielle Pletka, the vice president for foreign and defense policy studies at the American Entreprises Institute.

1. Will you exchange the current “train and leave” approach to the war in Iraq for a clear-and-hold victory strategy, which may include increasing troop levels, abandoning standard rotations (now limited to one year), replacing commanding generals and bypassing spending restrictions to obtain crucial equipment?

2. You have in the past suggested that the United States should have a direct dialogue with Iran. Is it your view that Iran’s sponsorship of terrorist groups in Iraq, Lebanon and the West Bank and Gaza could end as a result of direct dialogue? If by dialogue you mean negotiation, what do you suggest the United States offer Iran in exchange for an end to its pro-terrorist foreign policy?

3. Are you prepared to undertake a sweeping review of the state of the American military and its ability to respond to identified national security threats? Are you prepared to increase the size of the ground forces?

6) An anti-Ramsfeld

By Kalev I. Sepp, a former officer in the United States Army Special Forces and an assistant professor in the department of Defense Analysis at the Naval Postgraduate School.

1. It is clear that your immediate task must be to resolve the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. What else will you be able to accomplish as secretary of defense in the next two years?

2. Is the Department of Defense the right agency to lead the war on terrorism?

3. What do you intend to do to improve the department’s cooperation with other government agencies in combating terrorism?

4. Will you rebalance the air, naval and ground forces to increase the size of the Army and Marine Corps?

5. How will you avoid making the mistakes of your predecessor.