________________________________________________________________________Richard S. Kem
So, I knew him well, and we had quite a personal interaction. I also knew most of the folks
around the headquarters, so it really wasn't a major transition.
Now, the style changes from Otis to Saint were rather major to the command, as they
adjusted to a new Commander in Chief. General Otis was a very "on top of things" person,
but his method was really letting people do things--but he was always there at the sound of
guns.
General Saint had a few things that he wanted to be sure happened, so he started putting out a
few directives and changed the style around. Both of them worked through their Chief of
Staff, and so I guess it was a fast, fast start out the gate for the horse, and so I had to grab the
tail and pull the whole staff and coordinate a whole bunch of activities, so the intensity of the
pace picked up. Transitionwise, as far as knowledge and everything else, it was not such a
major change.
Q:
Well, the Chief of Staff's position is--correct me if I'm wrong here--is a position that the
commander has a large hand in filling. Isn't that the case?
A:
I think so.
Q:
You very much were handpicked by General Saint, in this case, for the job? It's a key job.
A:
I would guess so. He always had a saying that he would let his subordinate Corps and
division commanders pick three people: their chief of staff, their G3, and their command
sergeant major. After that, the folks were his to allocate to cross level and fill other positions.
Q:
So, you would expect he would think that in terms of his Chief of Staff. Did you know
several months in advance of the change, or was it pretty quick?
A:
No, I think I probably only knew about 60 days in advance. The May time frame is my
recollection.
Q:
Give me a brief description of the USAREUR Chief of Staff's responsibilities. That could go
on for a long time, but sort of characterize the job.
A:
General Saint believed the Chief of Staff is supposed to run things. He provides the direction,
the thrust, calls the shots, the policies, and that sort of thing, with the day-by-day activities of
the command at the headquarters run by the Chief of Staff. That means coordinating all the
many activities so things, as he would say, hum along, keep moving, and then prepare for
new things and make recommendations--making sure everything happens.
He had a deputy commander that he put on to certain responsibilities, but he really expected
that I would run the staff and thereby the command. His morning meetings were with me, the
command sergeant major, and the deputy commander. Whereas General Otis used to have
the DCSOPS, Major General George Joulwan, come in as part of those meetings, General
Saint said, "No, the DCSOPS runs his staff. You're the Chief of Staff; he works for you. I'll
tell you what I want the DCSOPS to be pushing, and you go make sure it happens."
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