Download the MP3 audio version of this story here, or sign up for The Explainer’s free daily podcast on iTunes.
Maj. Gen. John Batiste Two more retired generals stepped forward on Thursday and called for Donald Rumsfeld to resign, increasing the faction of outspoken officers to six. Rumsfeld brushed off the criticism: “Out of thousands and thousands of admirals and generals, if every time two or three people disagreed we changed the secretary of defense of the United States, it would be like a merry-go-round. ” How many retired admirals and generals are there?
It’s hard to get good numbers, but the Explainer estimates that about 4,700 general officers are enjoying their retirement in the United States right now. (For a detailed look at the data and the Explainer’s calculations, click here.) That means the six former generals who stepped forward to criticize Rumsfeld make up about one-tenth of 1 percent of the total community.
Retired generals pipe up all the time. In March, five of them wrote a letter to the Supreme Court asking that Justice Scalia recuse himself from the Hamdan case. In January, nine generals and three admirals banded together as the “Retired Generals Against Torture” and sent an open letter to the Senate judiciary committee.
During campaign season, retired generals issue small-group political endorsements.
Bonus Explainer: The group of six that have been in the news includes four major generals, one lieutenant general, and one general. What’s the difference? The plain old “general” has the highest rank—he wears four stars on his uniform. Three-star generals are called lieutenant generals, and two stars get you the title of major general. Brigadier generals wear only one star. (The Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps all use “general” titles. In the Navy, the top four positions are admiral, vice admiral, and two levels of rear admiral.)
Got a question about today’s news? Ask the Explainer.
WASHINGTON — More than 200 retired generals and admirals endorsed Joe Biden for president in a letter published Thursday, saying he had the character and judgment to serve as commander-in-chief instead of President Donald Trump, who has failed "to meet challenges large or small.
"
Some of the officers who signed the letter supporting Biden had retired only in the past few years, including Air Force Gen. Paul Selva, who served as vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under Trump before he retired in August 2019; Vice Adm. Gardner Howe, a Navy SEAL leader who also retired last year; and retired Adm. Paul Zukunft, who oversaw the Coast Guard until 2018.
Click here to read the letter
The list of signatories featured 22 retired four-star military officers, among them Navy Adm. Samuel Locklear, who oversaw all U.S. forces in the Pacific from 2012 to 2015, and Adm. Harry Ulrich, who commanded U.S. naval forces in Europe during President George W. Bush's administration.
Navy Adm. Samuel Locklear, now retired, speaks at the Pentagon in 2014.Jim Watson / AFP via Getty Images fileThe retired top brass signed the letter backing Biden along with nearly 300 other former national security officials and diplomats. William Webster, the former director of the CIA and the FBI, was among the signatories, along with five former defense secretaries: William Perry, William Cohen, Chuck Hagel, Leon Panetta and Ash Carter.
"My own personal view is that I have a duty to be involved in civic matters of the nation that I'm a citizen" of, retired Adm. Steve Abbot said of his decision to sign the letter.
Abbot served as commander of the U.S. Sixth Fleet and commander of Naval Striking and Support Forces in Southern Europe, and he later became Bush's acting homeland security adviser. He said that he believed he had a duty to speak out as a citizen and that he was troubled initially by Trump's comments about the late Sen. John McCain in 2016.
"To hear someone say that John McCain was a loser and they don't like people who become prisoners, I just knew I was going to have trouble going forward with somebody who held those views," he said.
Retired Navy Vice Adm. PGardner Howe speaks in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., on March 10.Stan Badz / Stan Badz / Getty Images file"Over the past four years, I've seen what is a clear manipulation of our military to serve his personal needs," Abbot said. "The military has been a loyal, reliable constant in this country because of its apolitical nature.
And here we had a president working to undermine it."
In August, more than 70 former senior national security officials — most of them Republicans who worked in previous GOP administrations — issued a similar letter throwing their support behind Biden, arguing that Trump had undermined America's role in the world. In the 2016 election, dozens of former Republican senior national security officials came out against Trump and became known as "Never Trump" Republicans. Many were blacklisted for jobs in the Trump administration for having signed the letters.
By law, military service members must remain apolitical while in uniform, but most senior officers stay out of the political arena even after they hang up their uniforms. Although the number of retired senior officers wading into politics has steadily increased over the past two decades, Thursday's letter was notable for the sheer number of top brass from every branch of the military who chose to endorse Biden.
"We are Republicans, Democrats, and Independents.
We love our country. Unfortunately, we also fear for it," they wrote.
The retired officers and officials said the country needs a principled, honest leader who shows empathy for fellow citizens, values alliances, makes informed decisions and takes personal responsibility.
"While some of us may have different opinions on particular policy matters, we trust Joe Biden's positions are rooted in sound judgment, thorough understanding, and fundamental values," they wrote.
"The current President has demonstrated he is not equal to the enormous responsibilities of his office; he cannot rise to meet challenges large or small. Thanks to his disdainful attitude and his failures, our allies no longer trust or respect us, and our enemies no longer fear us," the letter says.
"Climate change continues unabated, as does North Korea's nuclear program. The president has ceded influence to a Russian adversary who puts bounties on the heads of American military personnel, and his trade war against China has only harmed America's farmers and manufacturers," it says.
Several retired African American military leaders signed the letter, including retired Lt. Gen. Walt Gaskin, who commanded Marines in western Iraq; retired Lt. Gen. Willie Williams, who served as the No. 3 in the Marine Corps; and retired Lt. Gen. Ronald Coleman, who became the second African American in the Marine Corps to reach three-star rank.
A number of retired ambassadors also signed on, including Robert Blackwill, who was Bush's deputy national security adviser; James Cunningham, who was ambassador to Israel and Afghanistan under both Republican and Democratic administrations; and Robert Ford, a former ambassador to Algeria and Syria.
Courtney Kube is a correspondent covering national security and the military for the NBC News Investigative Unit.
Dan De Luce
Dan De Luce is a reporter for the NBC News Investigative Unit.
Putin fired five generals and one police colonel - Gazeta.Ru
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Vladimir Putin signed a decree on the resignation of five Interior Ministry generals and one police colonel.
The heads of the Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Vladimir and Yaroslavl regions, the deputy head of the Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Altai Territory, the head of the operational department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia and several other officials have been relieved of their posts. According to RBC's source, the reason was personnel rotation. This was later confirmed by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed five generals and one police colonel. This is stated in an extract from the decree of the head of state, RBC reports.
The head of the department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Vladimir Region, Police Major General Vasily Kukushkin, was relieved of his post. He turned 64 this year. Before heading the department, Kukushkin served in the Ryazan law enforcement agencies.
From 2003 to 2004 he was the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Ingushetia, after which he became the head of the department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Kostroma region, was the head of the police of the Republic of Karelia.
In addition, the deputy head of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Altai Territory, the head of the regional police, Major General Alexander Laas, resigned. He also turned 64 years old. Since 1979, he has served in various positions in the militia and the regional police.
According to Federal Law No. 342 "On Service in the Internal Affairs Bodies of the Russian Federation", the age limit for service in the service for the general staff of the Ministry of Internal Affairs is 65 years.
Major General Andrey Lipilin, Head of the Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Yaroslavl Region, was dismissed. Prior to that, he worked in law enforcement agencies of the Magadan and Omsk regions, in 2002 he became the head of the Internal Affairs Directorate of the Ramensky District of the Main Internal Affairs Directorate of the Moscow Region. In 2011, Lipilin became deputy head of the central office near Moscow.
Police Major General Alexander Udovenko, head of the operational department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation, was relieved of his post.
Before that, he was the head of the department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Okrug.
The Deputy Head of the Department for Logistics and Medical Support of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Major General Yury Instrankin, has also been removed. Previously, he was deputy head of the Main Directorate of Criminal Investigation of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia.
Finally, the President dismissed Colonel Emil Musin - he worked for a long time in the Forensic Center of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Musin is the editor of the textbook "Forensic Economic Examination in Criminal Procedure". According to federal law, for an internal affairs officer with the rank of colonel, the age limit for service is 60 years.
RBC's source explained the resignation as a "normal personnel rotation." Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also linked the decree on the resignation of the generals and the colonel with a change in personnel.
“Rotation,” commented the presidential press secretary in an interview with RIA Novosti.
In November 2021, Russian President Vladimir Putin also signed a law allowing colonel generals and admirals to serve for up to 70 years.
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President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on personnel changes in the leadership of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Three heads of regional central departments and three heads of structures of the central apparatus of the Ministry of Internal Affairs resigned
Vladimir Putin (Photo: kremlin.ru)
On Monday, May 30, President Vladimir Putin dismissed five generals and one police colonel, according to an extract from the decree (RBC has a copy), its authenticity was confirmed by a source close to the Ministry of Internal Affairs .
RBC sent a request to the press center of the Ministry of Internal Affairs with a request to confirm this information.
The President dismissed Major General of Police Vasily Kukushkin, Head of the Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Vladimir Region, Major General Alexander Laas, Deputy Head of the Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Altai Territory (Chief of Police), Major General Andrey Lipilin, Head of the Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Yaroslavl Region, Major General Alexander Udovenko, Head of the Operational Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Major General Yury Instrankin, Deputy Head of the Department for Logistics and Medical Support of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and Police Colonel Emil Musin, First Deputy Head of the Forensic Center of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
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The President also appointed Police Colonel Aleksey Shkolkin to the post of head of the Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Yaroslavl Region, who until now was the head of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Odintsovo district of the Moscow region.
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The source explained the resignation of high-ranking policemen by the usual personnel rotation in the ministry.
Vasily Kukushkin, Head of the Department for the Vladimir Region, turned 64 this year. Prior to his appointment as head of the central office, he served in the internal affairs bodies of the Ryazan region, from 2003 to 2004 he served as the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ingushetia, and then headed the Internal Affairs Directorate for the Kostroma Region and led the police in the Republic of Karelia. Alexander Laas, Deputy Head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Altai Territory, also turns 64 this year.
He has worked in various positions in the internal organs of the region since 1979 years old.
Major-General Andrey Lipilin, before joining the post of head of the Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Yaroslavl region, worked in the police, and then in the police of the Magadan and Omsk regions. In 2002, Lipilin headed the Internal Affairs Department of the Ramensky District of the Main Department of Internal Affairs of the Moscow Region, and in 2011 he became Deputy Head of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia for the Moscow Region.
Major-General of Police Alexander Udovenko, before joining the operational department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, led the Commander-in-Chief in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug. Police Major General Yuri Instrankin, prior to his appointment as Deputy Head of the Department for Logistics and Medical Support of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, was Deputy Head of the Main Directorate of Criminal Investigation of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, and Colonel Emil Musin worked for many years in various positions in the Forensic Center of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
