I'm John Batchzer. This is CBSI on the world. I'm visiting with Steve Deal, Captain U.S. Navy

retired, a veteran inside the building as well as a veteran at sea and on land in the wars of these last decades.

Defining a problem I didn't know existed, which is that three and four stars are not reviewed by anybody but other, but they're friends, three and four stars.

And that the politics of this mean that once you retire from the army, you're moving into a post that is enormously rewarding, so don't rock the boat.

What is to be done? You mentioned the nomination for the Secretary of Defense,

Mr. Hegeseth, which is certainly a departure from the past. Is that enough? Do we need some

structure to be changed, Steve? Yes, absolutely, John. I mean, we must take civilian control of the

military and our national security. I mean, the people are the ones who create that national security.

We can look towards systems and structures and institutions, but the people that we nominate

and lead those processes are really that should be the focus of all our efforts.

And the Secretary of Defense has the power in law to, for one, approve or certify that the performance is for a three or four star officer is sufficient for retirement.

And when that officer is retired in that grade, John, it's for life. If you have served 40 years in the military, you get 100% of your base pay for the rest of your life.

Obviously, you're going to move on to different boards of directors or other things that are pretty highly esteemed in American society.

American media brings those folks alongside as pundits and consultants.

And so it's kind of a soft-looking ice cream cone where no one questions that group of people.

And so it's going to take something, I believe, and, you know, I was so surprised as everyone,

probably, other than the president, Pete Hickseth was nominated.

But this, like I say in the article, this could be a martial moment for change where,

yes, we don't want to fight a war, but we certainly want to deter one.

And picking the right people to be able to deter one might, I feel, take some drastic

measures, things that we might be allowable in law, but certainly

have not been allowable in our current social structures in the military.

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