Panetta Comments On His First Week As Defense Secretary

U.S. Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta meets with traveling press pool members aboard a U.S. Air Force E-4B aircraft, July 8, 2011. DOD photo by U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Jacob N. Bailey

Panetta Discusses First Week as Defense Secretary -- U.S. Department Of Defense

KABUL, Afghanistan, July 9, 2011 – At the end of his first week as defense secretary, Leon E. Panetta boarded an E-4B airborne command post aircraft for the trip here.

While refueling, the plane hit some air pockets. The secretary said his first week at Defense was a lot like the plane ride.

“It’s big, it’s complicated, it’s filled with sophisticated technology, it’s bumpy, but in the end it’s the best in the world,” he said.

Read more ....

My Comment: So he is traveling around and meeting people ... that is to be expected on the first day of any job. But Secretary Panetta also makes it clear on what his priority will be ....

.... The secretary said he wants to create a vision of what the Defense Department will look like in five to 10 years. “I think that’s important to do particularly in light of the budget issues I’ll be confronting this year as well,” he said.

I have been of the opinion that Defense Secretary Panetta was chosen solely to graple and cut the defense budget .... dramatically if need be. If I read the above sentence correctly (as well as the rest of the article) ... that is clearly where his focus is on for the moment.