“…in late June of 2010, Rolling Stone magazine ran an article entitled ‘The Runaway General’ that featured behind-the-scenes remarks by [top U.S. and NATO Commander in Afghanistan General Stanley] McChrystal and his staff. The NSC [National Security Council] adviser, retired Gen. Jim Jones, was depicted as a ‘clown,’ [Special Representative to Afghanistan Richard] Holbrooke as overbearing, [Vice President Joe] Biden as foolish, and [U.S. Ambassador Karl] Eikenberry as cunning and self-centered.” On June 23, 2010, “After meeting with his political advisers, [President Barack] Obama surprised Secretary [of Defense Robert] Gates and the Pentagon by firing McChrystal for not showing the proper respect for civilian control.”
– Bing West, The Wrong War, Page 225