So it came as a big surprise to him when one day the telephone rang and a Canadian general proposed that he take on the post of commander of Unamir.
His central point is that there must be "synergistic" progress in all dimensions.He has been a highly political commander, taking on the job of speaking to Pakistan's president, Pervez Musharraf, "soldier to soldier".
And he won praise from President Barack Obama for having "taken on the mantle of commander-in-chief in a way that we have not seen in the past from an Afghan president".Mr Ghani comes away with a prize, of sorts: a tweaking of Mr Obama's plans to pull American forces out of Afghanistan.
Clinton sought to raise doubts about whether Sanders was prepared to take on the responsibilities of commander in chief.
WASHINGTON -- Jeb Bush's presidential campaign launched its latest ad on Tuesday, featuring previous Medal of Honor recipients speaking about why the former governor of Florida is ready to take on the role of commander in chief. .
Since General Petraeus took on the commander's job in June, several aides said, the president has struck a more deferential tone toward him than he used with Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, General Petraeus's predecessor.
Since he was appointed Mr. Khadr's lawyer last year, Commander Kuebler has taken on his cause with a drip-drip-drip of attacks on the prosecution.
Already armed with his sterling war record, the senator could now revel in his internationalism and his eagerness to take on the role of commander-in-chief.
Rubio's own decision to emphasize age could backfire, as some of his prospective Republican opponents question whether he has the experience to take on the role of commander-in-chief.
In Mr. Obama's second year in office, the challenge will be how to prosecute such a war in Pakistan, the sovereign territory of an ally that, so far, has had neither the will nor the ability to take on Al Qaeda's top commanders.
