Andrew Goodpaster
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Andrew Jackson Goodpaster
Andrew Jackson Goodpaster (born 1915) was a career Army officer who played a major role in organizing NATO forces in Europe; served as adviser to presidents Eisenhower, Johnson, and Nixon; and served brief terms as commander of the National War College and of West Point.
Andrew Jackson Goodpaster was born in Granite City, Illinois, on February 12, 1915. He graduated second in his class from West Point in 1939 and served with Army Corps of Engineer outfits in Panama and Louisiana. In World War II he saw action as commanding officer of an engineer battalion in North Africa and Italy. In the years after World War II, Goodpaster established ties that would significantly influence his career. In August 1944 he went to the Operations Division of the General Staff in Washington, D.C. Remaining thereafter V-J Day, he became closely associated with Army Chief of Staff Dwight D. Eisenhower.
Goodpaster was a pioneer among the new breed of postwar "army intellectuals," officers with extensive postgraduate training in civilian universities. He took a Masters degree in engineering from Princeton University in 1948 and a Ph.D. in international relations in 1950.
When General Eisenhower assumed command of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) forces in Europe, Goodpaster joined him, serving as assistant to the chief of staff, Gen. Alfred Gruenther. In that capacity Goodpaster played a major role in helping to organize NATO forces and define the political and military aims of the fledgling alliance.
In 1954 Goodpaster joined President Eisenhower as staff secretary in the White House. Eisenhower had organized his presidency along the lines of a military chain of command, and Goodpaster was a key figure. He maintained liaison with all departments engaged in national security issues and coordinated cabinet operations. Working closely with presidential "chief of staff" Sherman Adams, Goodpaster helped to determine which issues would be brought to the president, briefed Eisenhower daily on foreign and defense policy matters, and attended all cabinet and National Security Council meetings. He made sure that key figures were not left out of policy discussions, and he saw that Eisenhower's decisions were executed. He came to know his boss so intimately and was able to anticipate his wishes so well that he became known as the president's alter ego. Following the end of the Eisenhower administration, Goodpaster returned briefly to Europe, serving as commander of the 8th Infantry Division.
He came back to Washington in November 1962 and remained there for the next seven years, holding a number of different staff positions. He served as a special assistant to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Maxwell D. Taylor. In August 1966 he became director of the joint staff of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and in May 1967 he was chosen to be the Army representative on the United Nations Military Staff Command. From July 1967 to June 1968 he was commandant of the National War College.
During these same years Goodpaster carried out important tasks related to the Vietnam War. President Lyndon B. Johnson described him as "one of the ablest officers I knew" and used him to maintain liaison with former President Eisenhower. At Johnson's direction Goodpaster regularly briefed Eisenhower on the course of the war and carried back to Johnson the former president's personal advice and recommendations. Goodpaster also made several trips to Vietnam with groups sent to survey developments there, and while with the Joint Chiefs and the National War College he supervised major study projects relating to various aspects of the war. From May to July 1968 Goodpaster was the U.S. military representative at the Paris peace talks. He then went to Vietnam as deputy to Commanding General Creighton Abrams.
Goodpaster served as chief military adviser to President-elect Nixon during the transition period and continued to play important political and military roles in the Nixon years. In July 1969 he assumed the position of supreme allied commander in Europe, which he held until October 1974.
Following his retirement from the Army in December 1974 Goodpaster became a senior fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. He subsequently held the John C. West Chair of Government and International Studies at The Citadel.
In a move that was without precedent, he was called out of retirement in April 1977 to become superintendent of West Point in the wake of a cheating scandal that had severely tarnished the reputation of that venerable institution. He remained at West Point until 1981.
Goodpaster was described by former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger as a "man of vast experience, great honor, and considerable ability." A tireless worker, Goodpaster was utterly devoted to the Army he served for so many years. After his second retirement he was president of the Institute for Defense Analysis, a private think tank in the Washington area. In 1996, Goodpaster with other generals and world-wide political figures helped to determine what steps, both practical and political, needed to be taken to abolish nuclear weapons.
Further Reading
The Eisenhower staff system is capably and sympathetically analyzed in Fred I. Greenstein, The Hidden-Hand Presidency (1982). The handling of the Vietnam War during the Johnson years is covered in Maxwell D. Taylor, Swords andPloughshares (1972) and in Lyndon B. Johnson, The Vantage Point (1971). Recent articles referencing Goodpaster include Bill Gertz, " U.S. still needs nukes, official says," The Washington Times (February 23, 1997) and Alan Cranston, "Even the generals disagree," Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (November 21, 1996).
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Andrew Goodpaster
| Andrew Jackson Goodpaster | |
|---|---|
 Andrew Jackson Goodpaster |
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| Born | February 12, 1915 Granite City, Illinois |
| Died | May 16, 2005 (aged 90) Washington, D.C. |
| Allegiance | United States of America |
| Service/branch | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1939-1974 1977-1981 |
| Rank | General |
| Commands held | Superintendent, United States Military Academy, 1977-1981 Supreme Allied Commander, Europe (NATO), 1969-1974 8th Infantry Division, 1961-1962 |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Awards | Distinguished Service Cross Defense Distinguished Service Medal (2) Army Distinguished Service Medal (4) Navy Distinguished Service Medal Air Force Distinguished Service Medal Silver Star Purple Heart (2) Presidential Medal of Freedom Medal of Freedom |
Andrew Jackson Goodpaster (February 12, 1915 – May 16, 2005) was an American Army General. He served as NATO's Supreme Allied Commander, Europe (SACEUR) from July 1, 1969 and Commander in Chief of the United States European Command (CINCEUR) from May 5, 1969 until his retirement December 17, 1974.[1] As such, he was the commander of all NATO (SACEUR) and United States (CINCEUR) military forces stationed in Europe and the surrounding regions.
General Goodpaster returned to service in June 1977 as the 51st Superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York until he retired again in July 1981.
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Military career
Goodpaster's career in the Army began when he entered the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1935, followed in 1939 by a commission as a second Lieutenant in the Corps of Engineers after graduating second in his class of 456. After serving in Panama he returned to the U.S. in mid-1942 and, in 1943, attended a wartime course at the Command and General Staff School, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
During the Second World War, he commanded the 48th Engineer Combat Battalion in North Africa and Italy. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, the Silver Star, and two Purple Hearts for his service in World War II. His combat experience was cut short in January 1944, when he was severely wounded and sent back to the United States to recover. After his wounds had healed, he was assigned to the War Planning Office under General Marshall, where he served the duration of the war.
General Goodpaster was seen by many as the quintessential "soldier-scholar". At Princeton University he earned an M.S. in Engineering and an M.A. in 1949 and then earned a Ph.D. in International Affairs, also from Princeton, in 1950.
Key assignments
- Staff Secretary and Defense Liaison Officer to President Eisenhower (1954–1961)
- Advisor to the Administrations of Presidents Johnson (1963–1969), Nixon (1969–1974), and Carter (1977–1981)
- Commander of the San Francisco District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), the 8th Infantry Division in Germany (1961–1962)
- Director of the Joint Staff, Organization of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, 1966–1967
- Commandant of the National War College, 1967–1968
- Deputy Commander of the U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam, aka MACV (1968–1969)
- Commander-in-Chief of USEUCOM and Supreme Allied Commander of NATO Forces (1969–1974).
First retirement
After retiring in 1974, he served as senior fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and taught at The Citadel. His book, For the Common Defense was published in 1978.[2] He was brought back to active duty as superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy (1977–1981) after a notorious cheating scandal in 1976. Although he had retired with the rank of General (four star), he served as superintendent with the rank of Lieutenant General (three star), since that billet carries that rank.
Second retirement and later years
In 1981, when Goodpaster retired for the second time, he reverted to the four-star rank.
In his later years, Goodpaster was vocal in advocating the reduction of nuclear weapons. In September 1994, he commented, “Increasingly, nuclear weapons are seen to constitute a nuisance and a danger rather than a benefit or a source of strength.”[3] In 1996, along with General Lee Butler and Rear Admiral Eugene Carroll, Goodpaster co-authored a statement for the Global Security Institute[4] advocating the complete elimination of nuclear weapons due to their danger and lack of military utility.
Awards
- In 1961,[5] President Dwight D. Eisenhower awarded Goodpaster the Medal of Freedom for his work in the position of Staff Secretary to the President of the United States, and as Liaison Officer of the Department of Defense to the White House, 1954–1961, “for distinguished service in a position of grave responsibility.”[6] Correction: Goodpaster was actually awarded the Distinguished Service Medal at this ceremony—typographical error on citation. Goodpaster's copy of the citation has the words "Presidential Medal of Freedom" lined out, and Distinguished Service Medal written over it. As a serving US Army officer at the time, Goodpaster could not have received the Medal of Freedom.[7]
- At General Goodpaster’s first retirement in 1974, President Gerald Ford awarded him the Defense Distinguished Service Medal.[8]
- In 1984, President Ronald Reagan awarded Goodpaster the Presidential Medal of Freedom “for his contributions in the field of international affairs.” This was the first and only award of this medal to Goodpaster.[9]
- In 1992, he received the United States Military Academy Association of Graduates’ Distinguished Graduate Award.
Publications by Andrew J. Goodpaster
Listed in order of date published, the last is first:
- Goodpaster, Andrew J. and Rossided, Eugene. Greece's Pivotal Role in World War II and Its Importance to the U.S. Today. Washington, D.C.: American Hellenic Institute Foundation, 2001
- Goodpaster, Andrew J. When Diplomacy Is Not Enough: Managing Multinational Military Interventions: A Report To The Carnegie Commission On Preventing Deadly Conflict. New York: Carnegie Commission on Preventing Deadly Conflict, 1996
- Goodpaster, Andrew J. Gorbachev and the Future of East-West Security: A Response for the Mid-Term. Atlantic Council of the United States Occasional paper, April 1989
- Goodpaster, Andrew J. et al. U. S. Policy Toward the Soviet Union. A Long-Term Western Perspective, 1987-2000. Lanham, MD: University Press of America, Lanham, MD, 1988
- National Security and Détente. Foreword by General Andrew J. Goodpaster with contributions by faculty members of the U.S. Army War College. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Company, Apollo Editions, 1987
- Goodpaster, Andrew J. Strengthening Conventional Deterrence in Europe: A Program for the 1980s. Westview Special Studies in International Security (ISBN 0813370787). Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press, 1985.
- Goodpaster, Andrew J. and Elliot, Lloyd. Toward a Consensus on Military Service - Report of the Atlantic Council's Working Group on Military Service. Tarrytown, New York: Pergamon Press, 1982.
- Goodpaster, Andrew J. For the Common Defense. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 1978
- Goodpaster, Andrew J. Civil-Military Relations: Studies in defense policy. Washington, D.C.: American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, 1977
- Goodpaster, Andrew J. and Huntington, Samuel P. Civil-Military Relations. University of Nebraska Press, Omaha: American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, Washington D.C., 1977
- Goodpaster, General Andrew J. SHAPE and Allied Command Europe In the Service of Peace and Security. 1973.
See also
References
- ^ "General Andrew J. Goodpaster , USA". NATO. http://www.nato.int/shape/bios/saceur/goodpaster.htm. Retrieved 2009-04-24.
- ^ Andrew J. Goodpaster. For the Common Defense. Lexington, Mass: Lexington Books, 1978
- ^ Global Security Institute: Quotations by world leaders on the dangers of nuclear arms
- ^ Global Security Institute website
- ^ Awarded Medal of Freedom from President Eisenhower
- ^ Quoted from the Citation Accompanying the Medal of Freedom Presented to General Andrew J. Goodpaster, January 18, 1961
- ^ Citation is in the Andrew J. Goodpaster Collection of Personal Papers, Warwick, RI. Information also from John S. D. Eisenhower, who read the citation on that day, and Goodpaster himself.
- ^ President Gerald Ford’s remarks at the retirement ceremony of Gen. Andrew J. Goodpaster as Supreme Allied Commander, Europe, December 19, 1974
- ^ Quoted from the announcement of the Recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, February 21, 1984
External links
- General Goodpaster's NATO biography
- Interview about President Eisenhower for the WGBH series, War and Peace in the Nuclear Age
- White House Office of the Staff Secretary Records, Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Sidney Bryan Berry |
Superintendents of the United States Military Academy 1977–1981 |
Succeeded by Willard Warren Scott, Jr. |
| Preceded by Gen. Lyman Lemnitzer |
Supreme Allied Commander Europe (NATO) 1969—1974 |
Succeeded by Gen. Alexander Haig |
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