Civilian control of the military is a core tenet of liberal democracies. The friction and struggle of this relationship garners more attention on the role of uniformed leaders. That leaves out a necessary component for civilians: that the execution of control be responsible, professional, informed 1 - ThreadSky

lorenraeds.bsky.social • 13 days ago

Civilian control of the military is a core tenet of liberal democracies. The friction and struggle of this relationship garners more attention on the role of uniformed leaders. That leaves out a necessary component for civilians: that the execution of control be responsible, professional, informed 1

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lorenraeds.bsky.social•13 days ago

There’s no test for the civilian side of the relationship, except election and senate appointment of the chain of command. Those hurdles are significant but ask less and less of what civilian control should mean. There’s not a school or a tutorial for the legal and implied obligations 2

lorenraeds.bsky.social•13 days ago

There’s a framework in civ mil relations about civilians “right to be wrong,” which is almost quaint in prior debates—civilians right to wade into military planning, elevate other measures of risk, change rules of engagement, in disagreement with their uniformed counterparts. 3

lorenraeds.bsky.social•13 days ago

But debates around that framework presumed a modicum of professionalism or intent. The right to be wrong was not the right to be reckless or racist or despotic. But maybe we should have better discussed that risk, and what it meant. 4

lorenraeds.bsky.social•13 days ago

The chairman of the joint chiefs, and many others, served at the pleasure of the president. In practice that means as part of his constitutional appointment powers. But I’ve often wondered at the phrasing - in one sense it feels quite autocratic following the whims of the executive 5

lorenraeds.bsky.social•13 days ago

But in another, I’ve thought about “the pleasure of the president” as meant to imply the connection between sovereign and nation, where the country’s welfare is derived from the president’s, and therefore his choices were necessarily fateful and hopefully thoughtful 6

lorenraeds.bsky.social•13 days ago

Today, the pleasure of the president seems far more to lean to a measure of whims; civilian control a right to be reckless or racist. That doesn’t have to stick. Norms stand out more when bent and broken. Processes and rules are the paths of our values. We have to notice straying to reset.

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