Tommy Franks
Tommy Franks | |
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War in Afghanistan | |
Awards | Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (United Kingdom) |
Tommy Ray Franks (born June 17, 1945) is a retired United States Army general. His last army post was as the Commander of the United States Central Command, overseeing United States military operations in a 25-country region, including the Middle East. Franks succeeded General Anthony Zinni to this position on 6 July 2000 and served until his retirement on 7 July 2003. Franks was the United States general leading the
Early life and education
Franks was born Tommy Ray Bentley in
Later, through the military, Franks was able to enroll at the
Military career
Franks enlisted in the
In 1968, Franks returned to Fort Sill, where he commanded a cannon battery in the Artillery Training Center. In 1969, he was selected to participate in the Army's "Boot Strap Degree Completion Program", and subsequently attended the
Franks, after graduating from the
In 1981, Franks returned to West Germany where he commanded the 2nd Battalion, 78th Field Artillery (1st Armored Division) for three years. He returned to the United States in 1984 to attend the
Franks' initial general officer assignment was Assistant Division Commander (Maneuver), 1st Cavalry Division during
From 1995 to 1997, Franks commanded the
Critics of Franks' tenure as commander of United States forces in Afghanistan cite his failure to deploy 800
Franks' retirement was announced on 22 May 2003. Secretary Donald Rumsfeld reportedly offered him the position of Chief of Staff of the United States Army, but he declined. On 7 July 2003 Franks' retirement took effect.
Franks' awards include the
Iraq War
Authors suggest that Franks was worn down by repeated pressure from U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to reduce the number of U.S. troops in war plans and cancel the deployment of the 1st Cavalry Division, a scheduled follow-on unit that was slated for deployment in April 2003.[8] More generally, they argue Franks' command was somewhat understandably focused on the immediate task in front of it – defeating Saddam Hussein and taking Baghdad – and few were willing to divert resources away from that effort and toward the long-term post-war needs.[9]
The writers also question his decision during the war to keep sealift ships carrying the equipment for the 4th Infantry Division (Mechanized) at sea instead of bringing the equipment ashore in Kuwait sooner so the division could have entered Iraq earlier than it did to add to the force levels in post-war Iraq. Franks argues that by keeping the ships at sea the Iraqis were deceived into believing a U.S. attack was yet to come from the north through Turkey, though Colin Powell and others have questioned his view.[10]
Franks wanted to retire after the major combat phase of the war, tired from planning and prosecuting two major wars and leading the overall war on terrorism since September 2001. As a result, Gordon and Trainor argue he was slow to act during the crucial months following the fall of
In Fiasco: The American Military Adventure in Iraq, veteran defense and Pentagon reporter Thomas E. Ricks echoes criticism from officers who had served under Franks who put forth that, while tactically sound, he lacked the strategic mindset and overall intellect necessary for the task. Some close to him argued he was more thoughtful than he seemed, was aware that Secretary Rumsfeld and his staff were unable to discuss the Iraq War in military terms and had an obligation to put forth stronger objections to the civilian control of military planning. While demanding and goal oriented he was also criticized for being unwilling to countenance alternate viewpoints and for detaching himself from day-to-day affairs when the ground war ceased and he prepared for retirement.[citation needed]
Weapons of mass destruction
According to Time magazine, on 21 November 2003, Franks said that in the event of another terrorist attack, American constitutional liberties might be discarded by popular demand in favor of a military state. Discussing the hypothetical dangers posed to the US in the wake of the 11 September 2001 attacks, Franks said that "the worst thing that could happen" is if terrorists acquire and then use a biological, chemical or nuclear weapon that inflicts heavy casualties. If that happens, Franks said, "... the Western world, the free world, loses what it cherishes most, and that is freedom and liberty we've seen for a couple of hundred years in this grand experiment that we call democracy." Franks then offered "in a practical sense" what he thinks would happen in the aftermath of such an attack.
"It means the potential of a weapon of mass destruction and a terrorist, massive, casualty-producing event somewhere in the Western world – it may be in the United States of America – that causes our population to question our own Constitution and to begin to militarize our country in order to avoid a repeat of another mass, casualty-producing event. Which in fact, then begins to unravel the fabric of our Constitution."
"[No] one in this country probably was more surprised than I when weapons of mass destruction were not used against our troops as they moved toward Baghdad," said Franks on 2 December 2005.[12]
Service summary
Dates of rank
Insignia | Rank | Date |
---|---|---|
Private second class | 1965 | |
Second Lieutenant | 1967 | |
First Lieutenant |
1968 | |
Captain |
1969 | |
Major | 1978 | |
Lieutenant Colonel |
1982 | |
Colonel | 1987 | |
Brigadier General |
1991 | |
Major General |
1994 | |
Lieutenant General |
1997 | |
General | 2000 |
Awards and decorations
Left breast
Aircraft Crewmember's Badge
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oak leaf clusters[13]
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Army Distinguished Service Medal with 1 oak leaf cluster |
Legion of Merit with 2 oak leaf clusters |
Bronze Star with "V" device and 4 oak leaf clusters | |||||||||
Purple Heart with 2 oak leaf clusters |
Meritorious Service Medal with 5 oak leaf clusters |
award numeral 9
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Army Commendation Medal with "V" device |
Army Achievement Medal with 1 oak leaf cluster |
Army Good Conduct Medal
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Presidential Medal of Freedom | service stars
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Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal | |||||||||
campaign stars
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campaign stars
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Army Service Ribbon | |||||||||
Army Overseas Service Ribbon with award numeral 4 |
Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire
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Vietnam Campaign Medal | |||||||||
Kuwait Liberation Medal (Saudi Arabia) |
Kuwait Liberation Medal (Kuwait) |
Cheon-Su Security Medal
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United States Central Command Badge |
Right breast
Joint Meritorious Unit Award | |||||||||||
Valorous Unit Award | Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation Ribbon
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Republic of Vietnam Civil Actions Unit Citation Ribbon
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Army Staff Identification Badge |
Personal life
Since 2003, Franks has operated Franks & Associates LLC, a private
Following his retirement, Franks published his memoirs in American Soldier,[15] which debuted as Number #1 on the New York Times Best Seller list in August 2004,[3] displacing President Bill Clinton's memoir from the top spot. One reviewer praised General Franks recollections of his Vietnam service but opined that the book, like the plan for and execution of the Iraq war itself, he said, "begins better than it ends." The reviewer expressed the wish that Franks had "relied less on the official record and more on his own experience and memories" in recalling the later war, as he had in recalling the earlier one.[16]
Speaking at the Republican Convention in New York on 31 August 2004, Franks endorsed President
In December 2005, Franks was appointed to the Bank of America board of directors, a position he held until resigning on 11 June 2009 for unspecified reasons but as part of an "exodus" of ten directors from April to August, 2009. The bank had received $45 billion of U.S. Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) funding and sustained dramatic losses starting in 2008.[18]
Franks also sits on
Franks sits on the board of directors of the National Park Foundation. He is an advisor to the Central Command Memorial Foundation and the Military Child Education Coalition, and is a spokesman for the Southeastern Guide Dogs Organization.[3]
Additionally he sits in the board of trustees for William Penn University, a university founded and supported by the Society of Friends (Quakers).
A museum dedicated to him lies in Hobart, Oklahoma.
Franks currently resides in Roosevelt, Oklahoma.
Charity controversy
In January 2008,
References
- ^ Franks 2004, p. 23.
- ^ "Texas general takes sharpest of minds into Iraq conflict". Associated Press. 9 March 2003. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 10 April 2008.
- ^ a b c d "About General Franks." Archived 6 March 2009 at the Wayback Machine Article at tommyfranks.com. Retrieved 2010-03-02.
- ^ Tommy Franks (2004), "American Soldier," 49-56. Franks writes on page 49 that he had "lugged my duffle bag under the steel arch topped with the sign reading "Robinson Barracks, United States Army Artillery Officer Cadet School."
- ^ Bergen, Peter (30 December 2009). ""The Battle for Tora Bora – How Osama bin Laden slipped from our grasp: The definitive account"". The New Republic.
- ^ Bergen, Peter. Manhunt: The Ten Year Search for Bin Laden From 9/11 to Abottabad. 2012. p. 50-51
- ^ Efran, Shawn (producer), "Army Officer Recalls Hunt For Bin Laden", 60 Minutes, CBS News, 5 October 2008.
- ^ Gordon, Michael R.; Trainor, Bernard E. (13 March 2006). "Dash to Baghdad Left Top U.S. Generals Divided". The New York Times. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
- ^ "Persian Gulf War | Summary, Dates, Combatants, Casualties, Syndrome, Map, & Facts | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
- ^ Plan of Attack, Bob Woodward, 2004
- ^ COBRA II Gordon and Trainor 2006
- ^ Warrick, Joby (16 August 2004). "Retired general 'surprised' no WMD found". CNN. Retrieved 22 June 2011.
- ^ Franks 2004, p. 623.
- ^ "www.idsint.com". Archived from the original on 2 April 2007. Retrieved 27 September 2007.
- ^ Franks 2004.
- ^ "'American Soldier': Man With a Plan, Sort Of" Review by Michael Newman, The New York Times Sunday Book Review, 26 September 2004. Retrieved 2010-03-02.
- ^ "Text: Remarks by Retired General Tommy Franks to the Republican National Convention", Washington Post, 2 September 2004 10:21 PM ET. Retrieved 2010-03-02.
- ^ "Bank of America Says Three Directors Quit as Exodus Totals 10" by David Mildenberg, Bloomberg.com, 1 August 2009. Retrieved 8/1/09.
- St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the originalon 20 December 2009. Retrieved 20 November 2009.
- ^ Ross, Brian (17 January 2008). "Gen. Tommy Franks Paid $100,000 To Endorse 'F' Veterans Charity". ABC News. Retrieved 20 January 2008.
- ^ Jowers, Karen (18 January 2008). "Charity draws fire for paying generals". Army Times. Retrieved 20 January 2008.
- ^ Rucker, Philip (18 January 2008). "Chief of Veterans Charities Grilled on Groups' Spending". The Washington Post. Retrieved 20 January 2008.
- ^ Barrett, William P. (21 December 2007). "Charitable Taking". Forbes. Archived from the original on 23 December 2007. Retrieved 20 January 2008.
- ^ Schieffer, Bob (20 January 2008). "The Follies of Fundraising". CBS News Opinion: Face The Nation. Retrieved 20 January 2008.
- Franks, Tommy (2004). American Soldier. HarperCollins. ISBN 9780061739217. Retrieved 2 March 2010.
- Thomas E. Ricks, ISBN 1-59420-103-X
- Thomas E. Ricks, The Generals: American Military Command from World War II to Today. Penguin Press, 2012. ISBN 978-1-59420-404-3
External links
- "Gen. Tommy Franks paid $100,000 out of money donated for wounded veterans" Army Times, 18 January 2008
- "Gen. Tom Franks: A silent partner in Operation Enduring Freedom" – CNN, 24 October 2001
- General Tommy Franks – The Guardian (UK), 9 November 2001
- Official publisher web page for American Soldier Archived 26 December 2007 at the Wayback Machine
- Who is General Tommy Franks? – the truth seeker, 07/03/2003
- Franks & Associates LLC – About General Franks
- Appearances on C-SPAN