Stolen Email Offers Unvarnished View Of Military Leaders

The current chairman of the Joint Chiefs of StaffGen. Joseph Dunford, and the former uniformed leader of the Air Force were viewed as “great leaders but weak on strategic thinking,” according to a Pentagon official detailed to the National Security Council.

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Stolen emails released by WikiLeaks on Sunday (30) revealed a March 30, 2015, email from Christopher Kirchhoff to top Clinton campaign aide John Podesta that offered stark opinions about the nation’s top military leaders. At the time President Barack Obama was considering which officer to nominate as Joint Chiefs chairman.

In the hacked exchange, Kirchoff uses his government email account to update Podesta on the pros and cons of the four finalists. Kirchhoff says Adm. James “Winnefeld is seen as the clearest thinker” but is “often too abrasive to military and civilian leaders.” Air Force Chief of Staff Mark Welsh and Marine Corps Commandant Dunford, “meanwhile, are seen as great leaders but weak on strategic thinking,” Kirchhoff wrote.