The Man Behind One of Gates' Greatest Accomplishments as Secretary of Defense

By DEMONI NEWMAN

How will Robert Gates be remembered as Secretary of Defense? One of Gates' swan songs was recounting his push to get more MRAPs (Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles) to service members. Last week, days before the end of his tenure as SecDef, Gates said, "thousands and thousands of lives have been saved and multiples of that in terms of limbs" because of MRAPs. The estimated number of lives saved by these vehicles is as high as 40,000, according to the Pentagon's Joint Program Office.

But Franz Gayl, the man whose whistleblowing played a vital role in securing more MRAPs in Iraq and Afghanistan, is receiving censure rather than praise from the Marine Corps. In October 2010, the Pentagon suspended his access to classified information, escorted him from his office, and put him on administrative leave, effectively ending his career, supposedly for putting confidential documents onto a flash drive. Before he was suspended, he was subjected to intimidation, letters of reprimand, threats of demotion, and revocation of his security clearance.

A profile of Gayl published last week in The Washington Monthly offers a detailed account of his story. As told by The Washington Monthly, Franz Gayl enlisted in the Marines at age 17 and served for 35 years, going through the infantry, officer candidate school, Ranger school and jump school. He then served as a war tactics instructor at Quantico and attended the Naval Postgraduate School, where he earned a degree in space systems operation.

In 2006, The Washington Monthly reports, Gayl deployed to Iraq and joined the staff of General Richard Zilmer, who was leading the troops in Al-Anbar Province. In Anbar Gayl witnessed the high rate of casualties and desperate need for MRAPs to replace Humvees, which were being used by service members at the time. A Department of Defense Inspector General report that was sparked by Gayl's disclosures called Humvees "death traps" in attacks involving improvised explosive devices (IEDs). These IED attacks were the largest cause of casualties and injuries in the Anbar Province. Zilmer had been requesting MRAPs for months, but had found the Pentagon largely unresponsive.

According to The Washington Monthly piece, Gayl was told that the vehicles wouldn't be applicable after the war, weren't versatile enough, and that industry couldn't manufacture a lot of them quickly—excuses that didn't hold water when SecDef Gates took up the case.

Gayl told The Washington Monthly that he believes the Department of Defense avoided shifting resources towards MRAPs because it would be harmful to some of the pet projects at the Pentagon. In particular, the long-awaited and costly Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle, championed by General James Mattis, then head of the Marine Corps Combat Development Command. Upon returning from Iraq in 2007, Gayl met Lieutenant Colonel Roy McGriff, and discovered that in February 2005, McGriff had sent urgent notice to the Pentagon requesting MRAPs. His request was received, but never acted upon.

Gayl refused to accept the bureaucracy’s inaction. He knew that MRAPs would save lives of soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan, and, according to The Washington Monthly, was furious that bureaucratic feet-dragging had postponed the furnishing of MRAPs and cost hundreds of American lives (Gayl estimates that at least 700 U.S. service members died because of the two-year delay).

So he blew the whistle. After an Inside the Pentagon article indicated that requests for MRAPs were not made until 2006, Gayl sent McGriff’s 2005 request to a reporter. He went on to brief congressional staffs, testify before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and speak as an on-the-record source for numerous news agencies. POGO also played a role in publicizing his concerns regarding the unacceptable delay in MRAP procurement.

And his tactics worked. Just two months after Gayl sent the original request for MRAPs to the press, Gates announced the creation of an MRAP task force, and the necessary armored vehicles began to be manufactured in the thousands.

Thanks to Gayl, thousands of American soldiers' lives have been saved. But because he spoke out of the chain of command, he has been a target for retaliation. Gayl deserves to be honored for his acts, not vilified. The whole profile in The Washington Monthly is worth a read.

Demoni Newman is a POGO Intern.

Image: DJ Lein

Comments

[Gregg S]

Mr Gayl good luck from one whistleblower to another it is not easy coming forward.After what i have been going through with OSHA i learned real fast how bad it is dealing with the goverment trying to do the right thing.Again Thank you Mr Gayle from a navy dad.

I have had to turn to you tube to warn others not to come forward for there is no protection.

Gregg S
PROUD NAVY DAD

[Charles]

Mr. Gayl should be commended and rewarded for his courage in facing an implacable enemy: intransigent military bureaucracy. He exemplifies the true warrior and can walk proudly while his detractors scurry off to hide in shadows like the rats they are. I would wager not one of them would dare to put their record up against that of this extraordinary soldier

This shames our nation.

[Joyce Nicholson]

Mr. Gayl earns from most of us massive gratitude and awards and should be highly rewarded for his efforts to bring the truth and in doing so, saving lives of so many of our servicemen. It is Mr. Gayl's sort of military man we most admire and honor, his opponents are the ones who cause us to dislike, disbelieve and distrust most things military now.