Change is the Only Constant, CAF edition*

 I was invited to go to the Change of Command Ceremony for the new Chief of Defence Staff General Jennie Carignan (see here for my take on the decision)  It was a much bigger deal than I was expected (I don't know why I had lower expectations), as I had never been to one before.  So, yeah, the Prime Minister and Governor General (the latter is considered to be the commander in chief, but... you know) were there to be part of it.  A huge crowd was packed into the War Museum in front of a lot of tanks (one officer indicated that pretty much every Leopard II variant was there and I suggested that they could be sent to Ukraine).  

PMJT

I have had a number of chats with both the outgoing CDS Wayne Eyre (was on our podcast long ago) and the incoming CDS Jennie Carignan (who was also on our podcast longer ago, our second episode appropriately named Feminist Futures).  So, it was pretty cool to be there and see Eyre give his final words as CDS and Carignan to start her tour.  Eyre's speech started with a heap of civ-mil fun, reporting that Trudeau had told me that he was giving Eyre a turd sandwich, getting command of the CAF amid a series of severe scandals, and Eyre replied that he got the sandwich sans bread.  This was part of his discussion of the unequal dialogue that Eyre is fond of citing as he gives Eliot Cohen's Supreme Command book to ministers of defense.  The basic gist of the book is that the two sides of the relationship should be open and honest with each other although ultimately it is the civilians' job to decide and the military's job to advise and implement, and, yes, the civilians can and sometimes should reject the military's advice.  The book uses examples from Lincoln, Clemenceau, Churchill, and Ben-Gurion (the author has been busy disgracing himself with pieces dismissing the Trump threat).  Anyhow, I wish I recorded the event as he had different things to say about each of the three Ministers of Defence he worked with as he thanked them.  

I tended to be a fan of Eyre for a few reasons.  He was willing to learn and admit when he was wrong; he was more than willing to reach out and talk to shaggy academics (always a plus), he makes Star Wars references, he took seriously civilian control of the military rather than contesting it like a couple of his predecessors, and he took seriously the need for culture change.  In his speech, he not only cited Roland Paris's recent op-ed on the threat we face, but he also argued that the tradeoff between culture change and military effectiveness is a false one, something that I have argued.  He stood strong for culture change, which, of course, is very much identified with his successor.

Carignan is not just the first women to be chief of defence of a G7or G20 military (Slovenia is the first NATO country to do so), but also the former head of the command that was created in response to the scandals of 2021: Chief Professional Conduct and Culture.  Appointing Carignan identifies the 3 star position of heading CPCC as a real one, an important one, as a stepping stone to the top.  It is hard to evaluate the work of CPCC--how do you know the culture is improving--but it has been clear from my interactions with the folks at CPCC that they take their work very seriously, they have tried to learn from all kinds of places, and they have made a variety of productive changes.  It may not be enough to overcome the legacies of a century, but it seems to me things are moving in the right direction.  Of course, there is a backlash brewing.  

I got to chat briefly with the face of that backlash, retired LtG Michel Maisonneuve, and meet his wife.  I was tempted to say "I guess you are not that cancelled" as he did get invited, but I imagine he bristled at the comments made by most of the speakers and especially Eyre's.  Carignan is going to have a harder time than Eyre did for a few reasons:

1. Eyre took command after his two predecessors were disgraced, and it was clear something had to be done.  And as Peter Gourevitch argued long ago, crises break old coalitions and give leaders a chance to create new ones. The energy from that crisis is now dissipating, so Carignan won't be able to use it to push things forward.
2. Four years ago, most folks were shy about lining up to support the disgraced GOFO's.  Now that some have been acquitted (not exonerated, McDonald, that is something different), there are folks who are willing to stand up for regression.  
3. Carignan is a woman (duh, Steve), so she will face an enraged misogyny that Eyre simply did not have to deal with.
4. The Conservative Party of Canada is plagiarizing from the GOP and arguing that they are anti-woke, and they need to refocus the military way from inclusivity and more towards effectiveness (that is a false choice, of course, as I mentioned earlier).  If the CPC wins the election, Carignan may find herself either replaced or forced to compromise on what she has stood for.  

But enough of being a downer. It was a great event--the military does recognition better than any other organization.  I enjoyed both the event and the reception as I got to chat with a member of a CDSN Summer Institute cohort, some media folks, some academics, some officers I have bumped into before, and my favorite former Defence Minister--I got to meet Anita Anand in person for the first time although she appeared in my class twice. And I met some new folks, so it was a terrific morning.  

*  The title of this post came from a conversation I had with a senior officer.