The very next day, Gates fired Harvey too. The move was a sudden one that took the Army's own staff in the Pentagon by surprise.

The recent change in U.S. military leadership and strategy in Iraq was a direct consequence of Rumsfeld's dismissal and his replacement by Gates. It was deliberately planned by Gates and his colleagues. The sackings of Weightman and Harvey were not anticipated, but were a direct response to the scandal of the revelations of poor standards and health care being implemented at Walter Reed Hospital in Maryland, the U.S. Army's premier health care institution for its own forces.

However, the fall of Weightman and Harvey were also signs of the very different values, attitudes and managerial style that Gates is bringing to the Pentagon from his controversial, much criticized predecessor.

Rumsfeld's six-year tenure of office was marked by his driving will, inflexibility and also by a deep sense of complacency and personal loyalty towards top staff. He never demanded any change in top commands in Iraq. He micromanaged his generals -- to a degree never attempted by any previous SecDef in U.S. history.

But even while the Sunni insurgency in Iraq went from bad to worse, Rumsfeld never demanded an accounting. One of his foremost critics, retired U.S. Army Col. Douglas Macgregror, has argued that in every major modern war the United States ever fought, dozens, sometimes hundreds of generals had to be fired because they were not up to the challenges and intense physical and mental pressures of the job. But Rumsfeld refused to do it or to let the top uniformed commanders he micromanaged do it.

This complacency appears to have affected the administration of Walter Reed as well. Over the past two years, an increasing number of reports had appeared in the media about problems over health care there. But Weightman kept his job. Harvey saw no need to fire him before, or to institute any independent inquiry. Rumsfeld certainly saw no need to heed the criticism and complaints and hold either Wieghtman or Harvey to account.

It may be that Gates would have looked for a reason to fire Harvey anyone, wanting to purge the top Pentagon positions of Rumsfeld loyalists. But this does not appear to be the case. Had it been so, Gates would have swung his ax right after taking over as SecDef, or signaled that hew as going to be put his trop officials under searching scrutiny., he did neither of those things.

Gates's decision to fire Harvey, even after Harvey had -- very belatedly -- fired Weightman appears geared to send a different message through the corridors of the Pentagon: It is that the era of business-as-before, of complacency, and of ignoring outside criticism is over.

Gates' action also sends a message to U.S. soldiers risking their lives in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere around the world that the new SecDef appears a lot more prepared to take action to preserve and improve their medical care than his predecessor did. At a time when U.S. forces are squaring off in new confrontations against the Sunni insurgents in Baghdad and bracing for an expected Taliban spring offensive in Afghanistan, those are timely and welcome signals.

earlier related report
Cody plays key role in Army upheavals
Washington (UPI) March 05, 2007 The U.S. Army's Vice Chief of Staff, Gen. Rchard Cody, has been thrust into the hot seat by recent top level upheavals.

Retired Brig. Gen. David Grange told the Army Times in comments published Monday that Cody would have to provide the steadying hand and balance the U.S. Army needed following the resignation of its civilian head over the Walter Reed Hospital health care scandal.

"As the vice chief, he is going to be the steadfast leader in this period," Grange told the newspaper. "You really have to have Cody kind of holding things together."

Cody is also acting as the bridging link between the former and incoming military leadership of the Army. Gen. George Casey, the former U.S. ground forces commander in Iraq, is coming in as the new Army Chief of Staff replacing retiring Gen. Peter Schoomaker. Gne. Schoomaker's brother, Maj. Gen. Eric Schoomaker, is taking over the administration of Walter Reed Hospital in Baltimore following the recent revelations and scandals about the quality of health care for wounded soldiers there.

Cody became the 31st vice chief of staff of the U.S. Army, on June 24, 2004. He had previously served as deputy chief of staff, G-3, U.S. Army. His other key assignments included those of commanding general, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) and Fort Campbell; director, operations, readiness and mobilization, Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Plans the HQ of the Department of the Army; deputy commanding general, Task Force Hawk, Tirana, Albania; assistant division commander for maneuver, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Hood, Texas; commander, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, Fort Campbell, Kentucky; commander, 4th Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division; aide-de-camp to the commanding general, Combined Field Army, Korea; and director, Flight Concepts Division.

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