A01=James N. Mattis
A01=Kenneth F. McKenzie
Abu Bakr al Baghdadi
Afghanistan
Afghanistan War
Afghanistan withdrawal
Afghanistan withdrawal 2021
Age Group_Uncategorized
Age Group_Uncategorized
Al Qaeda
Author_James N. Mattis
Author_Kenneth F. McKenzie
automatic-update
Category1=Non-Fiction
Category=BGH
Category=BTM
Category=DNBH
Category=DNXM
Category=HBJF1
Category=HBLX
Category=HBW
Category=NHG
Category=NHWR9
CENTCOM commander memoir
civil-military relations
civil-military relations United States
civilian control of the military
combat commander
combatant commander role
COP=United States
counterterrorism operations
Delivery_Delivery within 10-20 working days
Donald Trump
eq_bestseller
eq_biography-true-stories
eq_history
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
execution of military policy
Frank McKenzie
Frank McKenzie memoir
Iran
Iran deterrence operations
Iran proxy conflict
Iraq
Iraq drawdown operations
ISIS
ISIS leadership targeting
Islamic State
James Mattis
Joe Biden
Joint Chiefs of Staff dynamics
Kabul evacuation
Language_English
leadership
leadership in combat
Middle East military strategy
military command authority
military memoir Middle East
modern American warfare
noncombatant evacuation operation
PA=Available
Pentagon policy process
Price_€20 to €50
PS=Active
Qassem Soleimani
Qassem Soleimani strike
regional security Middle East
senior military leadership insights
softlaunch
strategic leadership lessons
Syria
U.S. Central Command
U.S. Central Command history
U.S. defense policy 21st century
U.S. Marine Corps
U.S. Marines
U.S. military leadership
U.S. national security decision making
United States Central Command
war against ISIS
Product details
- ISBN 9781682474495
- Weight: 616g
- Dimensions: 152 x 228mm
- Publication Date: 11 Jul 2024
- Publisher: Naval Institute Press
- Publication City/Country: US
- Product Form: Hardback
- Language: English
Secure
checkout
Fast Shipping
Easy returns
As the Commander of U.S. Central Command, General Frank McKenzie oversaw some of the most important — and controversial operations in modern U.S. military history. He had direct operational responsibility for the strikes on Qassem Soleimani and two successive leaders of ISIS, the many months of deterrence operations against Iran and its proxies, and the methodical drawdown in Iraq. He directed the noncombatant evacuation operation in Afghanistan, and our final withdrawal from that tortured country.
The Melting Point has three themes. The first one is the importance of the primacy of civilian control of the military. It has become a widely perceived truth that this control has been eroded over the past few years. General McKenzie doesn’t believe that to be the case, and he speaks with some authority on the matter arguing that the civ-mil relationship isn’t perfect or frictionless, but it doesn’t have to be, and probably shouldn’t be. It is, however, more durable than many believe, and is supported and embraced by the military to a degree that some critics do not choose to recognize.
The second theme is the uniqueness of being a combatant commander. Combatant commanders participate in the development of policy, although as junior partners. They are also responsible for the execution of policy once civilian leaders have formulated their decision, a unique position, and very different than the role of a service chief, or even the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. None of these officers are in the chain of command, and they have no ultimate, mortal responsibility or authority for execution. Only the combatant commander stands astride the boundary of decision-making and execution.
Finally, the third theme that McKenzie argues is that leaders matter, and the decisions they make have a profound effect on what happens on the battlefield. McKenzie provides an honest assessment of his time in command—describing decisions that were sound, as well as some outcomes he wishes were different. He offers a vivid portrait of leadership in action in one of the most volatile regions of the world.
The Melting Point has three themes. The first one is the importance of the primacy of civilian control of the military. It has become a widely perceived truth that this control has been eroded over the past few years. General McKenzie doesn’t believe that to be the case, and he speaks with some authority on the matter arguing that the civ-mil relationship isn’t perfect or frictionless, but it doesn’t have to be, and probably shouldn’t be. It is, however, more durable than many believe, and is supported and embraced by the military to a degree that some critics do not choose to recognize.
The second theme is the uniqueness of being a combatant commander. Combatant commanders participate in the development of policy, although as junior partners. They are also responsible for the execution of policy once civilian leaders have formulated their decision, a unique position, and very different than the role of a service chief, or even the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. None of these officers are in the chain of command, and they have no ultimate, mortal responsibility or authority for execution. Only the combatant commander stands astride the boundary of decision-making and execution.
Finally, the third theme that McKenzie argues is that leaders matter, and the decisions they make have a profound effect on what happens on the battlefield. McKenzie provides an honest assessment of his time in command—describing decisions that were sound, as well as some outcomes he wishes were different. He offers a vivid portrait of leadership in action in one of the most volatile regions of the world.
General Frank McKenzie, USMC, retired as the fourteenth commander of U.S. Central Command in 2022, completing a forty-two-year career as a Marine. Prior to Central Command, he served as the Director of the Joint Staff. He is currently the Executive Director of the Global and National Security Institute and the Florida Center for Cyber Security at the University of South Florida and resides in Tampa Bay.
