One thing I wrote was that our Special Operations Command was the logical military asset to take the lead in the war:
Units of the United States Special Operations Command, fighting unconventionally as they are trained, will stand at the sharp end and bear the brunt of our sustained offensive against the terrorists. Composed of our own fiercest warriors in the various branches of the Armed Forces, these units can seek out our enemies on the ground in other countries with or without the cooperation of those states. Our vast array of special operations units can come from the sea, air, or ground to stealthily strike in raids or identify targets for other elements of the Armed Forces. Fighting on the ground in small numbers backed by special operations aircraft, helicopters, and gunships, they can wreak havoc and inspire fear. At the high end of the special operations spectrum, we could drop an entire Ranger regiment if we discover a location of a group that has holed up somewhere and has resolved to die in place fighting. Such an airborne attack could also be used to secure sites that might have weapons of mass destruction or the means to produce or assemble them. Special operations forces will also be needed to free hostages or defend embassies or Americans overseas under attack in this ongoing war. Just because we have resolved to go on the offensive does not mean our enemies will sit passively awaiting inevitable defeat. They believe they will win this war and will continue to try and strike us. They will hurt us again.
Just recently, this article (via Real Clear Politics) notes that SOC will officially be the arm of the military to run the military campaign against the terrorists wordlwide:
U.S. Special Operations Command has drafted a war plan that sets up procedures for how its commandos will work with other regional commands across the globe to hunt for senior Islamic terrorists.
The complex plan from SoCom in Tampa, Fla., has been in the works since summer 2002, when Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld signed a secret directive authorizing it. His memo directed SoCom to come up with a plan for dispatching special operations forces on quick notice to virtually any spot in the world to kill or capture terrorists.
This role is another apparent promotion from supporting command to the regional commands, to equal command, to the lead command for the war on terrorists:
"It's the execution plan for SoCom's lead role in the war on terror," one defense source said. Approving a SoCom war plan would be a key piece of Mr. Rumsfeld's overall strategy of defeating al Qaeda worldwide.
In early 2003, Mr. Rumsfeld elevated SoCom to a status equal to war-fighting commands, such as Central Command, which plan their own battles and executions. Until then, SoCom had only supported war-fighting commands. He also designated SoCom as the global command in the war on Islamic terrorists.
I'm fine with this. We want low key for going after terrorists inside other countries. Special Ops boys are good for this. Plus the training of friendsly forces to help fight the scum.
The conventional side of our military still has tasks related to the war on terror (destroying or pressuring regimes supporting terrorists) plus other missions unrelated to terrorism and more traditional in nature (China, Venezuela, Cuba, North Korea, etc.), so hopefully they won't fight this division of labor.
We have plenty of threats despite our dominance and power. We need all our elements of national power where appropriate.
