"When war
comes, you look for certain special qualities in the people
you'll be working with.
General Tom
Franks embodies those qualities: strength, experience,
a keen mind, energy, honor, good humor, and a deep loyalty
to his troops and to his country.
"Tom Franks is truly a soldier's
soldier."
-- Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld
The Commander in Chief of the United States Central Command
from July 2000 through July 2003, General Tommy Franks made
history by leading American and Coalition forces to victory
in Afghanistan and Iraq -- the decisive battles that launched
the war on terrorism.
In this riveting memoir, General Franks retraces his journey
from a small-town boyhood in Oklahoma and Midland, Texas,
through a lifetime of military service -- including his heroic
tour as an Artillery officer in Vietnam, where he was wounded
three times. A reform-minded Cold War commander and a shrewd
tactician during Operation Desert Storm, Franks took command
of CENTCOM at the dawn of what he calls a "crease in
history" -- becoming the senior American military officer
in the most dangerous region on earth.
Now, drawing on his own recollections and military records
declassified for this book, Franks offers the first true
insider's account of the war on terrorism that has changed
the world since September 11, 2001. He puts you in the Operations
Center for the launch of Operation Enduring Freedom just
weeks after 9/11, capturing its uncertain early days and
the historic victory that followed. He traces his relationship
with the demanding Donald Rumsfeld, as early tensions over
the pace of the campaign gave way to a strong and friendly
collaboration.
When President Bush focused world attention on the threat
of Iraq, Franks seized the moment to implement a bold new
vision of joint warfare in planning Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Rejecting Desert Storm–style massive troop deployment
in favor of flexibility and speed, Franks was questioned
by the defense establishment -- including Secretary of State
Colin Powell. Yet his vision was proven on the ground: Within
three weeks, Baghdad had fallen.
American Soldier is filled with revelation. Franks describes
the covert diplomacy that helped him secure international
cooperation for the war, and reveals the role of foreign
leaders -- and a critical double agent code-named "April
Fool" -- in the most successful military deception since
D-Day in 1944. He speaks frankly of intelligence shortcomings
that endangered our troops, and of the credible WMD threats
-- including eleventh-hour warnings from Arab leaders --
that influenced every planning decision. He offers an unvarnished
portrait of the "disruptive and divisive" Washington
bureaucracy, and a candid assessment of the war's aftermath.
Yet in the end, as American Soldier demonstrates, the battles
in Afghanistan and Iraq remain heroic victories -- wars of
liberation won by troops whose valor was "unequalled," Franks
writes, "by anything in the annals of war."
Few individuals have the chance to contribute so much of
themselves to the American story as General Tommy Franks.
In American Soldier, he captures it all.
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