Toast to Petraeus

Ladies and Gentlemen, Generals David Petraeus and Ray Odierno:

The TOA of MNF-I has occurred, with General Odierno taking command. As a Lieutenant General, GEN Odierno commanded III Corps. III Corps served as MNC-I until last winter, when they returned home and XVIII Airborne Corps took over MNC-I's responsibilities. Now GEN Odierno is back to command MNF-I as a whole, and GEN Petraeus is going to become the combatant commander of US Central Command.

The headline of this article tells an important story, though: GEN Petraeus' tour as head of MNF-I was twenty months. The Surge units of the Army did fifteen months each, a grueling stint away from home and family. GEN Petraeus did what an officer is supposed to do: he asked nothing of them he did not do himself, and in fact did more.

His command of MNF-I will be remembered in history books as the time when we got the focus right, and began to reverse the chaos that had been rising in Iraq until his tenure. He leaves Iraq in a far better state than he found it.

At the appropriate hour, whenever that is for you, I suggest a toast to the gentlemen. In fact, I suggest three: one to their health, one in honor of their last assignment, and a last to hope for success in their next.