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Jay
Garner, a personal friend of Rumsfeld, was an assistant deputy
chief of staff during the 1991 Gulf War, and directed several
major Defense Department programs including the Patriot
anti-missile system.
Notably,
Garner was President Ronald Reagan's point man, as the
commanding general of the army's Space and Strategic Defense
Command, on the "Star Wars" missile defense scheme.
His
admirers describe him as compassionate and people-oriented, and
his role in the resettlement of Kurdish refugees to northern
Iraq following the Gulf War has been emphasized.
While
naming a military man to a civilian role has a precedent in
Japan after World War II, General Douglas MacArthur, it appears
unprecedented to have someone in charge of rebuilding a country
who until recently headed a company that was partially
responsible for its destruction.
Garner
became president of the weapons contractor SY Coleman after
retiring from the army in 1997 with a near total lack of
experience in the private sector.
The
high-technology defense contractor, acquired by defense giant
L-3 Communications last year, specializes in missile guidance
systems.
The
choice of a man so closely tied to the military industrial
complex to run the civil administration of post-war Iraq has
raised questions of a possible conflict of interest.
Garner
has allegedly used his Pentagon connections to win 100 million
dollars in contracts for SY Coleman.
Garner,
who denied any wrongdoing, countered with a defamation suit, and
the matter was settled out of court in January.
More
troubling for some are Garner's stated political views in total
support of Israel and his ties with the Jewish Institute for
National Security Affairs, which have prompted accusations of
Zionism from some Arab critics. Garner has made several public
statements in support of Ariel Sharon’s government.
He
has been regularly denounced by the Council on American-Islamic
Relations for his views.
This
is perhaps why the Pentagon has indicated that Garner will hold
the position for only a few months until he is replaced by a
civilian figure.
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