by Tom Clancy
The senior Krulak's service continued into the 1960s, by which time he was generally considered one of the nation's leading experts on the new science of guerrilla warfare. In early 1964, now a Major General (two stars), he helped plan raids into North Vietnam, even before active United States involvement started. He was later promoted to Lieutenant General and was placed in command of the Fleet Marine Forces, Pacific (FMFPAC), where he commanded the Marines in Vietnam through much of that ill-starred effort. He also came tortuously close to the post of Commandant of the Marine Corps: He was actually promised the post when the appointment was given to another Marine officer. Since that time, he has gone on to write his own book on the Corps, First to Fight, which many see as a classic work on the Marines and warfare. Yet despite his many personal achievements, it will be, perhaps, the achievements of his son that will go down as his single most lasting contribution to the Marine Corps. For when Chuck Krulak entered the Marines, Brute Krulak gave the institution a unique gift, a warrior around whom they could rally in a time of need. Let's talk to Chuck Krulak about it.
Tom Clancy: When did you first decide you wanted to be a Marine?
General Krulak: I decided that I wanted to be a Marine between the ages of eight and ten. It was the period when my dad was in Korea and immediately after his return. During that time he was involved in the fight to save the Marine Corps, which resulted in the amendment to the National Security Act of 1947. I could-n' t help being impressed by his efforts and by those of other senior officers and politicians [involved in the legislative fight that ensued] who came in and out of our house at that tremendously important time in the history of the Marine Corps. These men were involved in great efforts the results of which are reflected in the Corps we have today.
Tom Clancy: Did you have a sense of just who your father was, and how important he was in the history of the Marine Corps?
General Krulak: I didn't understand at the time. I knew that during the National Security Act struggle — during the second session of the 82nd Congress — he was doing something important; he was gone a lot, and my mother would just tell me that he was doing "important work." It was not until much later, however, that I realized how critical and pivotal these events were for the Marine Corps.
Tom Clancy: Let's talk about your career. It began at the Naval Academy, what years were you there?
General Krulak: 1960 to 1964. My class [of '64] had some very special people in it. The current Commander-in-Chief, U.S. Pacific Command [Admiral Joe Preuher] was my classmate, as was Secretary of the Navy John Dalton, plus a whole group of Navy admirals that are currently on active duty. It was a very special class in the sense of what has transpired for all of us and the Naval Service since graduation.
Following graduation from the Naval Academy and commissioning as a 2nd Lieutenant, General Krulak went to serve in South Vietnam. The experience was a defining moment for the young Krulak, and is best described by his own words.
Tom Clancy: What units did you serve with in Vietnam?
General Krulak: Immediately after attending the Basic School, I joined the 1st Marine Division and served as a platoon commander with Golf [G] Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines (2/1). Shortly after arriving at Camp Pendleton, the war broke out, and I was deployed with 2/1. I spent thirteen months in Vietnam, and was the commander of Golf Company by the time I returned.
Tom Clancy: Many people came away with vivid impressions of their experiences from Southeast Asia. What were yours? How does your own Vietnam experience effect what you do now?
General Krulak: I think that is a great question because the war has definitely had an impact on much of today's military leadership. I believe that we have a group of idealists at the senior levels of the military today — whether you are talking about a now-retired Colin Powell, a John Shalikashvili, or a Tony Zinni [the current commander of the I MEF]. I'm talking about the folks who came out of that war, particularly those who did multiple tours, who believed that there must be a more clearly defined reason for going to war again. Then, we went through the immediate aftermath of the war, where you had the race-relation and manpower problems which made the choice of a continued military career difficult. For an officer to lead a platoon or a company in Vietnam, come home and face the institutional issues of the day, and still progress up the promotion ladder required a deep-seated set of values — a commitment that next time, things were going to be done differently. No matter how it is described, I think that somewhere in each of us is a touchstone that we reach back to when things are tough. It helps us remember what happened in Vietnam and the promises we made that we would do things differently next time. I remember that even during the war we saw that things could be done better. We all made it through some tough times by sticking to our guns and to our ethos.
Tom Clancy: You did two tours in Vietnam. Would you please talk about them?
General Krulak: I went to Vietnam with the 1st Marine Division on Operation Harvest Moon in early 1965 [one of the earliest Marine operations in Vietnam], and stayed through 1966. I went back in 1969 with the 3rd Marine Division and spent all of my time in the Northern (I Corps) sector. That second tour went through the "Vietnamization" and drawdown phases of the war. What means more to me than a list of operations, dates, and places is what my experiences in Vietnam meant in terms of shaping me as an officer, and that goes back to what I learned about the Corps and Marines during that time. The most important lesson that came out of Vietnam for me was that Marines take care of Marines. I saw this over and over again; young Marines with wives and children back home who had every right to just look out for number one and make it back alive, but they all, to a man, would lay down their own life for the lives of their fellow Marines. Regardless of what was happening with the war on a macro sense, what I was experiencing on the ground with my Marines had a profound effect on me.
Following Vietnam, Chuck Krulak entered the normal career track of a Marine officer, which is to say that he did a variety of things. Some were normal "Marine" jobs, while others had what is now called a "joint" flavor.
Tom Clancy: After Vietnam, where did you serve?
General Krulak: I went back to the Naval Academy as an instructor, and I took with me the deep personal sense of our ethos. It dawned on me that this time [as a midshipman at Annapolis] is a critical period for new Navy and Marine officers. It is where their values — which mean more than anything — will be developed, so I took that responsibility very seriously.
From there I went out and commanded the Marine Barracks at Naval Air Station [NAS], North Island, California, and then went to study at the Army Command and General Staff College [Fort Leavenworth, Kansas]. From there I reported to the 3rd Marine Division, and served as the operations officer [S- 3] of 2nd Battalion, 9th Marine Regiment [2/9]. Then I moved to Headquarters Marine Corps in Washington, D.C., and worked in the Manpower Division, followed by a tour as a student at the National War College [Fort McNair, Washington, D.C.]. After that, I was sent to Hawaii and served as the Fleet Marine Forces Pacific plans officer, then executive officer of the 3rd Marine Regiment, and as commanding officer of the 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marines [3/3]. I then moved over to head the prepositioning ship program for the staff of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Brigade [MEB], and eventually became the brigade operations officer [G-3]. I then moved back to northern Virginia and spent one of the most challenging years of my life as the military assistant to Mr. Don Latham, the then Undersecretary of Defense for CI [Command, Control, Communications, and Intelligence]. I was the oversight officer for the battle management system on the Strategic Defense Initiative. It was incredible to be involved in a system that was definitely on the cutting edge. From there I went to the White House. I was there during the last year of the Reagan Administration [1988] and the first year of the Bush Administration [1989] as Deputy Director of the White House office. Following my White House tour, I was the assistant division commander of the 2nd Marine Division at Camp Lejeune, Nort
h Carolina. Then I took over command of the 2nd Force Service Support Group.
Like almost half of the Marine Corps, during the fall and winter of 1990 and early 1991, the junior Krulak, now himself a general, found himself in the sands of Saudi Arabia. Though trained as an infantry Marine, he wound up in a different position — serving as a logistician. As commander of the 2nd Force Service Support Group [FSSG], it was his job to keep over ninety thousand Marines involved in Desert Shield and Desert Storm supplied and fed.
Tom Clancy: Tell us about your work in Southwest Asia during Desert Shield and Desert Storm as head of the 2nd FSSG.
General Krulak: Initially MARCENT [Marine Component, United States Central Command] was going to rotate forces into the theater. But that idea was vetoed. Instead of replacing the existing in-theater forces, we reinforced them to about twice their original strength. So the 2nd Marine Division, the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, and my combat support organization fell in on top of the 1st MEF [composed of the West Coast-based 1st Marine Division, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, and 1st FSSG]. From the two combat service support units [1st and 2nd FSSG], we formed a direct support command that supported the Marine warfighters up front and a general support command to run the ports and bring the supplies into the theater. Then-Brigadier General Jim Brabham commanded the general support unit, and I commanded the direct support unit, which was the 2nd FSSG. My mission was to provide support for two full Marine Divisions, a heavily reinforced Marine Aircraft Wing [West Coast-based 3rd MAW, augmented by the East Coast-based 2nd MAW], the Army's "Tiger" Brigade [from the 2nd Armored Division], and my own 2nd FSSG troops.
After the war, I became MARCENT Forward and commanded the forward-deployed CENTCOM Marine forces responsible for the reconstitution of the Maritime Prepositioning Ships. This was a daunting task that required retrieving equipment spread over one hundred miles across the desert, transporting that equipment to the port of A1 Jubail in Saudi Arabia, then back-loading the equipment on the ships.
Tom Clancy: Since you've been an infantry officer for much of your career, could you tell us your thoughts about the effects of logistics on the success of the war?
General Krulak: My impression is that the success of the Marines in Southwest Asia will go down in history as a victory based on logistics. That's a tough thing to say for a career infantryman. From the very first days of Desert Shield, this was an operation heavily dependent on logistics. Just five days after Iraq invaded Kuwait, the five-ship, Maritime Prepositioning Squadron [MPSRON] 2 was ordered to Saudi Arabia. The following day, three ships of MPSRON 3 were ordered to the region. From receipt of the mission on August 7th until the final off-load on September 7th, the MPSRONs provided supplies and equipment to support over 53,000 Marines and sailors for thirty days. Not only did this effort completely validate the requirement for MPS, it formed the foundation of the tremendous logistic effort to follow.
Regarding the ground war itself, you hear and read a lot about the minefield breaching and "left hook" in the war, as well you should; but to get the Marines prepared to make that assault was a logistical nightmare. The only reason that the logistic part of the war has not gotten its due is that the ground portion was so successful. The difficulty inherent in supporting and sustaining that large a force was tremendous; but it was never really an issue, because the war went so fast. The follow-on support requirements just went away. Had it lasted, it would have been something else. The lessons learned are many and varied. It took about two thousand short tons a day to keep MARCENT in ammunition alone during the ground war. To me the Gulf War proved the accuracy of the maxim "Amateurs study tactics, and professionals study logistics." This is one of the great things about the MAGTF. It has its own tactical and logistical capability. You get everything with one call. Whether you order up a full MEF [a Marine Division/Aircraft Wing/FSSG], or an MEU [SOC], these units have their own logistics base that does not absorb itself as it conducts operations. They carry what they need with them, so that field operations can be sustained for a period of time [usually fifteen to thirty days] without the need for immediate resupply or reinforcement. That's the "expeditionary" part of the Marine Corps today. We have the offshore resources on the amphibious and MPS ships to sustain forces on the land without anyone's permission to base forces ashore.
Following the war and his own homecoming, Brigadier General Krulak began a task as painful as it was important, the drawdown and restructuring of the Marine Corps in the post-Cold War world. Under the so-called Base Force concept, all of the military services were to be downsized, with excess and redundant units and capabilities eliminated. General Krulak's job was to design and supervise this effort for the Marine Corps, without actually destroying it, or its vital capabilities.
Tom Clancy: You came out of Desert Storm, and then what happened?
General Krulak: When General Mundy assumed duty as the 30th Commandant, he assigned me as the head of the Personnel Management Division at Headquarters in Washington. I no sooner took over when he held an off-site meeting with all of his three-stars [Lieutenant Generals]. Out of that meeting came the decision to put together the Force Structure Planning Group [FSPG] to actually develop the plan to take the Corps down to the mandated [Base Force] level of 159,000 personnel. Essentially, we were tasked to take our existing Corps and build a new Corps. So the study group spent the next year working that issue and then, under the direction of General Mundy and with his personal involvement, selling our plan to Congress and the rest of the military services. The key was that, as the FSPG looked at the National Military Strategy and the Marine Corps' role, we determined that we could not meet the needs of this nation at 159,000. Our work showed that the number we actually needed was 177,000, of which we got to keep 174,000 active-duty Marines — a number that was validated by the Department of Defense Bottom-Up Review.
I was then promoted to lieutenant general in October of '92 and went to Quantico to command the Marine Corps Combat Development Command. During my two years there, we as a Corps were formalizing and institutionalizing the combat development process, which was the brainchild of General Gray. From there, I moved back to Hawaii and took over my father's last command, Marine Forces Pacific.
Following in his father's footsteps and commanding the Marine Forces of the Pacific was an honor for Chuck Krulak. But more was to come for the young three-star, as we will soon hear.
Tom Clancy: When you learned that you were being considered for the post of 31st Commandant of the Marine Corps, what went through you mind?
General Krulak: My very first thought was, "Am I up to the job?" I questioned whether I was the right man for the job because there were such great people in the running. General Mundy and Secretary [of the Navy] Dalton interviewed every three- and four-star general in the Marine Corps and all were qualified to lead the Corps. We have great generals, and Secretary Dalton made certain that everyone got his day in court. His personal efforts during this process are unmatched in the history of the Navy Secretaries. My second thought was about my wife Zandi, and the pressures that would fall on her. My third thought was that I had a great job as Commander, Marine Forces Pacific, and whatever happened I was going to continue to be challenged.
Tom Clancy: During this time, was there any thought on your part about how close your own father came to being appointed Commandant of the Marine Corps?
General Krulak: No. That was on his mind, though, because the reality is that he came a lot closer than most Marines know he did. He had, in fact, been told that he had the job, and then he didn't get it. So his concern was that history would repeat itself, and I just told him, "Quit worrying about it, because I'm not worrying about it." It was not an issue with me personally. I was not looking for the job. In my opinion, the last thing you want in an organization with this type of deep ethos of service is someone who actually wants or is posturing to be the Commandant. That's an ego issue and the wrong motivation. The job is so hard, so demanding, that if any service chief isn't do
ing it for what I call the "right thing," then he's going to have a real problem.
Tom Clancy: The day comes and you receive word that the President has nominated you to be the 31 st Commandant of the Marine Corps. What did it feel like?
General Krulak: It was a phenomenal experience. I found out while circling in a plane about five thousand feet above Mt. Suribachi on Iwo Jima. General Mundy, his wife, my wife, and I were headed to Iwo to commemorate the celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the invasion of the island. A radio operator handed General Mundy a small yellow message form. He looked at it, and then pulled my wife over to look at it. She looked at it, and started to cry. He then gave it to me, and it said, "The President of the United States has today signed and forwarded to Congress your nomination to be the 31st Commandant of the Marine Corps." It was an unbelievable feeling. Every emotion you could possibly think of came over me. You name it: from exhilaration to, "Oh, my God, what is happening?"…to relief…to fear.
The actual announcement was unforgettable. We were on top of Mt. Suribachi — virtually on top of some of the most glorious pages of Marine Corps history — when Secretary Dalton made the announcement to the assembled dignitaries, not least of whom were the survivors of that great battle. I was being told by the Secretary of the Navy that I was becoming Commandant at the exact same place where fifty years earlier Navy Secretary James Forrestal had looked over at General Holland M. "Howlin' Mad" Smith and, upon seeing the flag raised at the top of Mount Suribachi, said, "The raising of that flag…means a Marine Corps for the next five hundred years." My feelings were overpowering. There is a family connection here, because Holland M. Smith was my godfather. Now, half a century later, I'm standing where my godfather once stood and Secretary Dalton is telling the godson of that man that he would be the Commandant who would take the Marine Corps into the 21st century. It was a very emotional moment. I thought of my dad immediately. He and my mom were so excited and happy for me. I am convinced it meant more to them then it did to me.
