Who's in Charge? A Plea for Adult Supervision

It's a good thing there's no wars going on right now, as some "unnamed Senators" are in a pi$$ing match over general officer promotions.

From the Huntsville (Alabama) Times:

The leadership of key Army commands in Huntsville is caught in a game of political brinkmanship while the U.S. Senate works out its partisan differences.

The promotion of Maj. Gen. Larry Dodgen, current commanding general of the Army Aviation and Missile Command on Redstone Arsenal, to a three-star general is one of several Army promotions being held up by an unidentified U.S. senator.

Dodgen was set to turn AMCOM command over to Brig. Gen. James H. Pillsbury sometime this week and move over to command the Army Space and Missile Defense Command, or SMDC, which employs more than 1,000 people in Huntsville. Lt. Gen. Joseph Cosumano, current SMDC head, is rumored to have retirement plans, but neither the Pentagon nor SMDC will confirm that.

Those command changes and promotions have been placed on hold in a secret move by a single senator. By law, the Senate holds the power to approve general officer promotions, and just one senator can block, or "hold" as the maneuver is called in the Senate, these nominations.

<...>

"The members do this for a variety of reasons sometimes. In these cases, sometimes the member is known, sometimes the name is not known. In this case, the name isn't known." (Mike Brumas, spokesman for Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Al)

<...>

According to the Associated Press, the senator blocking the military promotions is thought to be acting in retaliation for a separate hold placed by an unnamed Democrat on an Army general's promotion.

Maj. Gen. Robert Clark was nominated by President Bush for his third star and a promotion. However, the nomination has been criticized by Democrats and gay-rights groups, because Clark presided over an Army post where a soldier thought to be gay was murdered.

If approved by the Senate, Clark would become a lieutenant general and the commanding general of the Fifth U.S. Army at Fort Sam Houston, Texas. Clark is currently the acting commanding general there.

Do I need to comment?