"Our [the Joint Chiefs of Staff] job is to present and my job with the Joint Chiefs and others is to present the range of [military] options that this President or any President should consider with all of the secondary and tertiary considerations that go into those options, so that a President can make whatever decision he wants to make -- and then we deliver."
"I picked that opening quote because most senior military officers would have answered just that they gave options, but in my experience few would have added the part about "all of the secondary and tertiary considerations that go into those options." In short, I believe what Caine said in giving military options to President Trump, was that he gave both the upsides and downsides of what could happen with each option."
"In giving the above answer, Caine went on to say, "I wouldn't want to share any particular advice or options that we're giving, but we present a lot of them." Again I would point out that Caine carefully noted he would not spell out any "advice or option" he has given Trump, but the fact that so far the President has not yet followed through on his threat to attack ground targets in Venezuel"
Gen. Dan Caine said the Joint Chiefs' job is to present a range of military options to a President, including secondary and tertiary considerations, so the President can decide and the military will carry out the chosen course. He spoke at the Reagan National Defense Forum and described advising on Venezuela as "Carefully." He declined to disclose specific advice or options, saying the Joint Chiefs present many options but would not spell out particular recommendations. The commentary notes that Caine's cautious public remarks contrast with few public reports and that President Trump had not pursued threatened ground attacks in Venezuela.
Read at The Cipher Brief
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