Hugh Shelton Quotes
If you fire him, you get two for the price of one.
The general’s view was that if the Secretary found something unacceptable in one of his direct subordinates, then there was something unacceptable about him as he supervised the man and approved of his work. Rumsfeld backed down.
Henry Hugh Shelton, Army General & Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Statement to Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld who wanted to fire one of the Joint Chief’s of Staff, Interview with Former Secreatry of Defense Cohen, C-SPAN After Words, December 18, 2010
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Compare this quotation with {632907}. Most members of Congress had limited management experience and the only solution to an organizational problem was to fire people. The referenced quotation has people fired to trigger reform and change; in this quotation, it is for the purpose of inspiring public trust. Ironically, there is no evidence in the management literature that suggests that firing for either of these reasons will have the desired objective.
Kennedy (the father of JFK) was U.S. Ambassador of Britain at a critical time in history—the rise of Nazism. To Roosevelt and most other’s surprise, Kennedy turned out to be a Nazi sympathizer. He was complimentary towards Hitler and Mussolini, an advocate for fascism. He had been a producer of films and he tried to pressure American film-makers not to make films depicting Hitler and Nazi Germany in a less than favorable light. He supported Charles Lindbergh and American Fascists and conspired with the English upper class supporters of Hitler and Fascism. He had publicly and privately argued against Lend Lease and military aid to England. Roosevelt, an incredibly persuasive leader, had invited him to Hyde Park to straighten out what he thought was a misunderstanding. The two men were in a room alone for 10 minutes when Roosevelt sought his wife and made the statement. Kennedy of course resigned. FDR never spoke to him again.
Henry Hugh Shelton is a former United States Army officer who served as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from 1997 to 2001.
