Coming only a day after the announcement of Les Aspin's impending resignation, the selection Thursday of retired Adm. Bobby Inman as the next defense secretary is remarkably swift - particularly for an administration that drags its feet in filling top jobs.
This alacrity can be seen as an indication that the White House has long been preparing the skids for Aspin's departure. Or it may be no more than a reflection of Inman's qualifications, which are particularly outstanding.Here is a former Navy admiral who most recently has been president and chief executive officer of an electronics and computer firm in Austin, Texas. Inman served in the Carter administration in the late 1970's as the nation's youngest head of the super-secret National Security Agency. President Ronald Reagan then tapped him as No. 2 man at the Central Intelligence Agency, a post he held until 1982 when he resigned over policy differences involving the Iran-Contra affair.
On top of all that, Inman is known for his good relations with Congress. One key lawmaker once went so far as to call Inman "the single most competent man in the federal government."
No wonder his new appointment is being applauded by Republicans and Democrats alike.
As a retired military man, Inman speaks the lingo of the top brass. A law barring uniformed military personnel from serving as defense secretary for 10 years after leaving the service is not a problem for Inman because he retired in 1982 when he left the CIA.
Another point in favor of Inman, who openly acknowledges he voted for Bush and not Clinton, is his statement that he did not seek or want the Cabinet post but is accepting the nomination out of a sense of duty.
Good thinking. The headaches that go with the top job at the Pentagon have only intensified as world conditions have altered.
In contrast to the Cold War when the Pentagon could focus mainly on threats from the communist bloc, the choices about funding and using U.S. military might have become more complex in recent years. Among other such challenges, the job of defense secretary has become complicated by questions of participating in the growing number of U.N. peacekeeping missions in forbidding places like Somalia and Bosnia, reducing defense spending while trying to keep U.S. forces ready for combat and social issues such as women in combat and homosexuals in the military.
Despite his impressive credentials, Inman can be only so effective without more help from the White House. The best assistance the administration could give the next defense secretary would be to replace its vague and often shifting foreign policy with a more firm and clear-cut set of international objectives.