Presidents & Pseudo-Military Garb
Dean
About a year and a half ago, some of the President's critics had conniption fits because, when he visited an aircraft carrier, he wore a military cap with "scrambled eggs" on the brim and a military jacket with the Presidential symbol and a name tag on it. They complained that it was inappropriate for a President to dress that way--even "unprecedented."
I kind of thought those objections were silenced back then but I've been reading identical complaints again, on several blogs (I won't pick on anyone in particular, I've seen it all over the place) as well as in the mainstream media. For example, this transcript from The Washington Post:
Conway, Ark.: Dana: Is it really seemly for a civilian President with no active duty military record to a don military unifrom? It seems questionable morally, and also suspect politically, as it naturally reminds people that he may not have completed his National Guard commitments honorably.
Dana Milbank: It is interesting that the White House had no concern that the carrier landing would revive the questions about Bush's service in the National Guard. The president yesterday even spoke fondly of his pilot days. This reflects the vast change in Bush's standing on national security issues and the White House's confidence that Bush is untouchable on military matters.
As for wearing military garb, the experts I checked with said it is unlikely any president had done that since Teddy Roosevelt, and that was before such images would be broadcast into millions of homes. Even true military figures, such as Eisenhower, avoided wearing uniform as president.
It is fair to ask whether the presentation of the civilian commander-in-chief in military clothing is wise. My belief, though, is the public will generally not question it.
Well gosh, what a scary thought that the President would do such an unseemly thing, and the public not question it!
Darn you, Jimmy Carter!
(served from 1977 to 1981)
And oh look, there's President Reagan, breaking with a Presidential tradition since Teddy Roo... er, Jimmy Carter!
(Served from 1981 to 1989)
You know it just gets scarier and scarier. The elder Bush really went wild with his military-dictator-look. Note the firghtening Presidential seal clearly visible on one side of the jacket, and the name tag on the other:
(Served from 1989 to 1993)
Here's an even scarier one: notice he's wearing both a military hat and a military blouse!
(Click image to see more detail.)And here we come to the most frightening pictures to date: the President--a President who never even served in the military!--stepping off of a helicopter onto on an aircraft carrier!
(Served from 1993 to 2001)
Oh no! Here's even more! Look! He's even wearing a military hat with scrambled eggs on the brim!
(Click image to see more detail.)
Now for the scariest photo of all. Look, the jacket's a different color now!
It very much appears that America is falling into a fascist totalitarian dictatorship doesn't it? Who does that former Air National Guardsman who volunteered to serve in a unit that was going to Vietnam think he is, dressing like that?
I mean, it's the color that's the dead giveaway, right?
By the way, courtesy of Instapundit, here's a photo of the late Robert Kennedy from when he served as Attorney General. Damn you Bobby, you dictator-wannabe!
Anyone want to help me find some pictures of other Presidents in similar garb? These didn't take me more than about 10 minutes to round up.
You know, it's all well and good to say a guy looks funny. But it's kind of silly to get bent out of shape over a President carrying on a simple tradition that's generally seen as one of respect to the military.
* Update * Uh-oh! Look what Kevin D. found!
(Served 1961 to 1963)
Man! Right on the deck of an aircraft carrier and everything! The nerve of that guy!
Meanwhile, in the comments, Mike says he's got one of Harry Truman in just such a jacket. I hope he's got a scanner. :-)
Related Posts (on one page):
- Just To Beat A Dead Horse...
- Presidents & Pseudo-Military Garb
And why can't the left leave the National Guard service alone?! The only things questionable about it are the one concocted in their own imaginations. Even after Rathergate no one is seriously looking at it because there's nothing there and every sane person has known this for a long time.
This annoys the crap out of me.
http://www.luskinreport.com/2003_05_04_chronArchive.asp
It also has a painting of Eisenhower in military garb with an explanation.
BTW, Truman used to vacation at the Key West Navy Base.
Please note: The SecDef is a civilian, as are the Military branch Secretaries. But the President is military, by definition.
That's one of the reasons the military were so angry about President Clinton's infidelity. Yes, it happens in the military all the time, but if you get caught or it affects the performance of your duties, you can get put in jail.
Especially if it is with a subordinate in your office.
I personally know a young USAF officer who was not only kicked out, but given jail time for having consensual sex with an enlisted airman.
...which is off the subject.
The only possible complaint anyone could have about a President wearing military garb is that he may be mixing military with civilian clothing, which is generally a no-no. Except that General Officers are already exempt from the uniform regulations (which is why Patton could wear what he wanted, and McArthur could have his non-regulation pipe), and so the C-in-C would also be exempt, being higher in rank than Generals.
I guess Dana Milbank didn't bother talking to anyone in the military, either. There's no point in letting facts get in the way of a chance to criticize President Bush, eh?
In the same vein as the shirt with the Apple logo I'm wearing right now in spite of the fact I don't work there. I do like the product, though. A lot. And here I am wearing the shirt. Hmmmm.
If you took pictures of the crowds that gather for basic training graduations, Army/Navy games, etc. you'll see any number of civillians dressing in clothes just like you see these presidents wearing.
What we have her is a case of a political issue being pulled out of thin air. Both sides are guilty of such rediculous arguments and the media is guilty of feeding it.
Honestly, who can blame a guy hanging out with a bunch of Navy Pilots for wearing a hat with some scrambled eggs on it?
When he starts wearing some circe 1800 generallisimo outfit to a press conference then I want to hear about it.
--|PW|--
Absolutely right, Brannon.
Now, if a president started wearing a full military uniform with medals, I would start to worry.
Penny: Yeah I'm seing Bush wearing a saber, a sidearm, a row full of medals on his chest he's awarded to himself... heh. Now that would be more than cringeworthy, wouldn't it?
It'll probably be by tomorrow as I have some events tonight (holiday season, don't you know.)
Good post. I'm totally guilty of bitching about this and the flight suit and I stand corrected... and, it's true, it's not like any President has walked around with phony medals dangling from his chest. It's just a snappy jacket. :)
Brian,
"he is our Commander In Chief. "
Small quibble. Unless you're serving in the military right now, he's not "your" Commander in Cheif.
It's aboard the USS Franklin Roosevelt in 1946.
The real question is why does anyone take Mr. Milbank seriously as a journalist? (Assuming anyone still does.)
Flight suits and flight jackets may be "military garb" but they're not uniforms in the strictest sense. They are flight gear, just like a flight helmet. Officers pay for their uniforms not the flight gear (technically, they should turn them in when they leave the military, but no one does as they really can't be reused). Air Force guys whined for years that they should get the nice leather jackets like the Navy guys which the Air Force finally did about ten years ago.
Navy ship ball caps ARE part of a uniform but are sold and worn by civilians all the time.
It's fun, although at times rather exhausting.
>>>>>
Didn't LBJ do that back when he was a Congressman? IIRC, there was a Silver Star or somesuch he would sometimes wear when not in uniform....
Wow. I had no idea they'd named a ship after FDR so soon after his death. Impressive.
Really, is this an exciting tactic for Leftists, psychotic or pleasurable perseveration, echolalia, or merely an intermediate term memory loss defect?
The answer is blowing in the wind -- or is that in breaking wind?
He is the Commander in Chief of our Armed Forces, and he looks fine wearing military regalia. He looked great in his flight suit.
I'm just going to let him do his job now.
USS Franklin D. Roosevelt, CVB 42. Originally named Coral Sea, the carrier was renamed after President Roosevelt's death. A large aircraft carrier of the Midway class, the FDR was commissioned 27 October 1945, decommissioned 30 September, 1977, and sold for scrap on 1 April 1978.
How's Pinky doing these days? (sorry.. heh)
But seriously, I'd would like to see some support for your claim that the president is "is military, by definition."
Um, who's definition is that? Silly me, I believed all the histories ever written about the United States -not to mention the political science analyses- all of which agree that the President of the United States is a civilian. In fact, that has always been one of the more unusual features of our political system, that a civilian -by law- must be the supreme commander in chief of the armed forces.
Take Bill Clinton, for example. When he took his oath of office in 1993, did he become a member of the military? No. If so, where are the documents? Did he get a pension? How much is it?
You have the situation precisely bass-ackwards; Clinton is the perfect example refuting your claim. President Clinton never joined the military, not even the reserves. He never served. He's two-hundred percent pure civilian. And for eight years he was Commander in Chief of the United States armed forces.
And -by the way- the president isn't "our" Commander in Chief, nor is he in particular my Commander in in Chief; why? Because I'm not serving. The president's CINC status only applies to the men and women currently serving. For the rest of us, the president is not "our" CINC.
That said, there's noting much wrong with scrambled-egg hats, and embossed jackets. They aren't -strictly speaking- uniforms.
Now if Bush (or anyone) showed up in full dress uniform, I'd start worrying! But which service? Marines? Army? Decisions, decisions... Heh.
Any officer of Flag rank or above has the privelege to design his or her own uniform. That's why Patton wore the silver helmet liner and jodpurhs [sp?] wih swagger stick and pearl .45's. He thought it looked cool.
That's also why Montgomery wore that slouchy beret and summer uniform, too.
If anybody is "Flag rank or above", it's the C-in-C. So, in that sense, an argument could be made that *anything* he wears is a uniform of his design.
What I mean is, it's the rank, not the clothes.
Patton never owned pearl-handled sidearms; his were ivory-handled. He was quoted to the effect that only only pimps used pearl-handled pistols.
BTW, you were close: it's "jodphur." :)
Interesting interpretation on the uniform question. If Hillary wins in '08, that means she could come up with some scrumptious little frilly pink outfit, kinda like the chick in Legally Blonde 2.
Think of it: "Pink is the new OD." Heh.
Otherwise: on the "flag-rank" thing: correct me if I'm wrong, but in modern parlance doesn't that effectively translate to "full colonel or above?" Basically if you wear the bird or a star, you can design your own uniform?
And how does that translate for the Navy, anyway?
WRT Flag rank: General or above, I believe. Colonels are birds, so stars.
Navy: They're typically ape on tradition, so you're more likely to see: Beards [Surgeon General Koop], weathered isignia [esp. in Europe], affectations like pipes, etc.
Nathan from Brain Fertilizer IS CURRENTLY SERVING in the military. I figured that when he said "our" he was referring to himself and his brothers in arms.
So chill out, dudes. M'kay?
But uh... Urthshu, is the Surgeon General a part of the Navy?!?!?
"Flag" rank is defined by those who are allowed to display a pennant or other "flag." Generally (in US terms) that means anyone at or above Rear Admiral or Brigadier General.
Army/Marine Colonel, or Navy Captain don't cut it. ;)
Note: in some (other country's) services there is a distinction between Brigadier and General. This is parallel to the distinction between (Navy) Commodore and Admiral. The United States solved this by shelving the Commodore/Brigadier rank (except for courtesy assignments, such as convoy duty), and creating Brigadier/Admiral ranks of the "lower half." Basically this increases the number of "flag" officers; whether this increases the leadership potential within the "flag rank" pool I leave to the discerning reader... Heh.
I've never seen an admiral with a parrot, though. Probably in the Pentagon somewhere. :^D
But what I meant by "by definition" is simply: He is Commander in Chief. Say that again: Commander in Chief. As in: Commander. Commanders cannot be civilian. Commanders are military. By definition of the word Commander, our Commander in Chief is then military. Ask any person serving in the military what the meaning of "Command" is.
Even in a real sense, the civilian leadership deals with logistics and requisitions and philosophy, but commanders fight the battles. The Hon. Mr. Rumsfeld doesn't plan the battles. The Chief of Staff doesn't run the war.
Now, the Commander in Chief, usually not having the experience to actually command the troops, delegates that command to the senior military officer...but he is still the top military commander.