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Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks

Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks

Dishonorable Leadership in the U.S. Military

by Jeffrey J. Matthews

432 pages, 6.00 x 9.00 in

Hardcover

Published: October 2023

ISBN 9780268206529

$38.00

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Published: October 2023

ISBN 9780268206512

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"If we are to be complete in our study of military leadership, we cannot stop with aspirations and stories of heroic leaders. Sadly, there are plenty of examples of scandalous and disappointing behavior by those at the very top of our most trusted organizations. Matthews provides many examples of failed leadership as a friendly critic who seeks to learn lessons from well-documented examples of senior officer misconduct." —Col. (Ret.) George E. Reed, author of Tarnished: Toxic Leadership in the U.S. Military

“Matthews's focus on flawed flag-level leadership provides a viable and provocative vehicle for examining a shocking array of shortcomings exhibited by high-level U.S. military leaders over the past century. Both the general public and aspiring military leaders would benefit by reading Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks.” —Joseph A. Fry, author of The American South and the Vietnam War: Belligerence, Protest, and Agony in Dixie

"In his latest book Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks, Matthews has skillfully presented and expertly analyzed seven case studies of senior military leaders failing to live up to the military’s high standards of ‘duty, honor, and country.’ This book is an essential addition to the reading list of those officers who are serious about their professional development and stewarding the military profession." —T. G. Bradbeer, U.S. Army Command and General Staff College

"Reading Jeffrey J. Matthews’s book is a painful but intriguing experience, and it should be on the reading list of every U.S. military officer! Well done!" —General (Ret.) Mike Hostage, U.S. Air Force, former Commander, Air Combat Command

"We cannot promote good leadership by denying bad leadership. Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks will not allow us to take the easy way out." —Barbara Kellerman, author of Leaders Who Lust: Power, Money, Sex, Success, Legitimacy, Legacy

"Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks should be required reading at commissioning sources, the various levels of officer professional military education, and as part of the CAPSTONE course for all newly selected generals and flag officers." —Brigadier General Jeff Hurlbert, U.S. Air Force, Commandant, National War College

"Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks is an engrossing, exemplary, and necessary book about leadership and the importance of character and humility. Matthews documents in sobering detail the great cost of generals’s and admirals’s malfeasance and, expertly, how to provide better leadership in military and civilian institutions." —Tim Bakken, author of The Cost of Loyalty: Dishonesty, Hubris, and Failure in the U.S. Military

"Matthews has provided an invaluable service in documenting the disconcerting lapses in judgment by American admirals and generals. This book should be read by every senior leader and individual aspiring to lead at high levels of command." —Rear Admiral (Ret.) Tim Gallaudet, U.S. Navy

"Matthews’s assessment of blatant criminal behavior through the nuances of loyalty to a cause or individual reveals how power, and absolute power, can influence and corrupt." —Brigadier General (Ret.) Dave Reist, U.S. Marine Corps

"Matthews’s exploration of civil-military relations is the best that I have ever read. This entrancing book should be studied by all officers who should deliberate on how they would react under similar circumstances." —Brigadier General (Ret.) Ronald Mangum, U.S. Army

"General and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks should be read and discussed by military leaders at all levels. Matthews exposes the failures, not only of individuals, but often of teammates who failed to speak up, and allowed so much to go so wrong." —General (Ret.) Joe Lengyel, U.S. Air Force, 28th Chief, National Guard Bureau

"Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks is a must read upon promotion to senior ranks and in the senior service schools. It is a sobering reminder to all senior officers that with great power comes great responsibility and that integrity is instrumental in leadership and maintaining an effective military." ―Major General (Ret.) Michael Kingsley, U.S. Air Force

"Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks sheds light on the dark side of military leadership. While its focus on the negative aspects of leadership may be challenging for some readers, its discerning analysis and thought-provoking narrative should be reflected on by all current and future military leaders, especially flag officers from all Services. —Major General (Ret.) John Barry, U.S. Air Force

"I couldn't put this book down. Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks is very sobering, and it should be. I highly recommend this book to a wide audience, and most especially to the leaders of America's armed forces." —Lieutenant General (Ret.) Joseph DiSalvo, U.S. Army

"In Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks, Matthews tells the stories of how some famous (and infamous) flag officers embarrass their nation and their profession in myriad ways. This book is a terrific tale of failures, and it must become part of the required reading on leadership at all our military staff and war colleges." —Lieutenant General (Ret.) Mark Hertling, U.S. Army

"Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks is destined to become required reading in military colleges at all levels any time the topic of ethics and wrongdoing is taught." —Brigadier General (Ret.) Chad Manske, U.S. Air Force, former commandant, National War College

"Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks is a fascinating, uncomfortable, and enlightening book. From war crimes to public corruption, these are notable cases with which all officers should familiarize themselves." —Major General (Ret.) Jeffrey W. Burkett, U.S. Air Force

"As a former Director of General Officer Management, I found Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks to be a fascinating and extremely relevant book for all leaders. Although a gut-wrenching subject, I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in studying leadership and better understanding the warning signs of trouble at the highest levels!" —Major General (Ret.) Christopher Craige, U.S. Air Force

"Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks is the most necessary study for aspiring military and political leaders I have ever encountered. The book should be required reading at our nation's war colleges." —Lieutenant General (Ret.) Stephen M. Speakes, U.S. Army

"This is a must read for Navy senior leaders! Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks takes you through the emotions of shock, embarrassment, and dismay, but more importantly, it creates a sense of deep introspection about your own ethics and morals. The case studies of Iran-Contra, Tailhook, and Fat Leonard will force you to reconsider your understanding of civilian control of the military, political influence, loyalty, and personal standards of moral courage!" —Vice Admiral (Ret.) Joe Leidig, U.S. Navy

"Matthews illustrates why character is the foundation of good leadership. Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks belongs on the joint forces’ professional reading list." —Lieutenant General (Ret.) Keith Walker, U.S. Army

"Nothing strikes at the heart of good order and discipline more than unchecked misconduct at the highest level. This book should be mandatory reading for every officer serving." —Colonel (Ret.) Don Christensen, U.S. Air Force, former chief prosecutor for the Air Force and military judge

"We need to hold all military personnel accountable to the same Uniform Code of Military Justice. Matthews’s Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks is ideal reading for members of Congress who are too often blinded by the stars on the uniforms of some." —Congresswoman Jackie Speier, former member of the U.S. House Armed Service Committee

"Matthews’s excellent exploration of abhorrent flag officer behavior is timely, insightful, and necessary." —Lieutenant General (Ret.) Jeffrey S. Buchanan, U.S. Army

"A thoughtful study of the ways in which power corrupts." —New York Times

"In Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks Jeffrey Matthews presents a thought-provoking and disheartening exploration of the detrimental impact of poor leadership at the highest ranks of our military. I highly recommend this book to the military and civilian members of the Department of Defense. It provides insights into bad leadership behaviors and how sometimes even good leaders can fail legally, ethically, and morally." —Major General (Ret.) Allan Day, U.S. Air Force

"A well-researched and masterfully written book...should become a staple at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College and the war colleges, and in all general officer courses." —Army Magazine

"The U.S. armed forces might pride themselves on the highest standards of leadership, but Matthews demonstrates in a series of disturbing and forensic case studies how military leaders often fall short." —Foreign Affairs

Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks is not an ad hominem attack on America’s senior military leadership. It recognizes that a decisive majority of admirals and generals have served honorably and that all leaders, military and civilian, make mistakes—often the very same mistakes. Troublesome issues of extralegal violence, sexism, racism, toxicity, obstruction, and corruption are not unique to the armed forces. To solve such problems, all organizations (including public institutions) must dare to expose and confront their leadership failures, no matter how disconcerting or embarrassing. Candid self-examinations are crucial for the U.S. military given its vital role in our democratic society. Because of the disproportionate power and influence of generals and admirals, their misconduct can have utterly dangerous effects, eroding not only civilian faith and confidence in the military, but also trust and respect within the all-volunteer ranks. John Adams wrote, “Liberty cannot be preserved” unless the citizenry has “that most dreaded, and envied kind of knowledge,” the truth about the character and conduct of its leaders.

This book’s primary objectives are to draw wider public attention to the nature of bad leadership and to illuminate specific types of unethical and criminal conduct committed by senior U.S. military leaders. Although we Americans are culturally inclined to study organizational success and good leadership, there are practical reasons to explore the failures and unseemly side as well. Most significant perhaps is that with an enhanced understanding of bad leaders (and bad colleagues and bad subordinates), we are better equipped to identify them, contest them, and hold them accountable. This is especially pertinent for leaders in government service. While the goal herein is to expose and catalog complex and pressing leadership problems, one hopes that a frank and historically grounded work such as this one will stimulate further debate and critical self-assessment within the U.S. military. Sober examinations of bad leadership can and should contribute to the positive development of good leaders. As Harvard’s Barbara Kellerman writes in Bad Leadership, “To deny bad leadership equivalence in the conversation and curriculum is misguided, tantamount to a medical school that would claim to teach health while ignoring disease.” Moreover, Lord John Dalberg-Acton, the grandson of a Neapolitan admiral, was entirely correct when he argued that we historians have a professional obligation—“[a] historic responsibility”—to hold powerful leaders accountable as “power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”

Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks employs operative definitions of good and bad leadership. Good leadership is ethical, lawful, and effective. Bad leadership is either unethical, criminal, or ineffective, or worse, all three. This book concentrates on unethical and criminal conduct by active-duty military leaders, thus setting aside the subjects of honorable but ineffective flag officers and the unchecked misbehavior of generals and admirals in the retired reserves. As for method, the text utilizes a case-study approach to scrutinize seven types of criminal or unethical leadership by American admirals and generals: war crimes, insubordination, moral cowardice, toxic leadership, obstruction of justice, sex crimes, and public corruption.