Obama Lashed McChrystal in Tense Faceoff

Prez reads commander riot act over his 'Chaos-istan' dig
By Mary Papenfuss,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 5, 2009 4:13 AM CDT
Obama Lashed McChrystal in Tense Faceoff
President Barack Obama meets with Gen. Stanley McChrystal aboard Air Force One in Copenhagen.   (AP Photo/White House, Pete Souza)

President Obama's talk last week aboard Air Force One with Afghanistan commander Gen. Stanley McChrystal wasn't merely a meeting, as was widely reported in the press, but a dressing down over the general's "shocking" recent comments calling for more troops, says the Telegraph. McChrystal was called on the carpet for outspoken remarks in a speech in London, where he ripped an alternate strategy advocated by Vice President Joe Biden to rely on drone missiles and special forces strikes at al-Qaeda targets.

In the speech, McChrystal scoffed that such an approach would result in "Chaos-istan." Asked if he would support the strategy, he responded: "The short answer is: No." McChrystal was quickly ordered to report to his commander in chief on the tarmac at Copenhagen, where Obama was pitching Chicago's bid for the Olympics. "People aren't sure whether McChrystal is being naïve or an upstart," a source tells the Telegraph. "He doesn't seem ready for this Washington hard-ball and is speaking his mind too plainly." (More Afghanistan stories.)

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