Insiders say Ralston will withdraw as Joint Chiefs candidate

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General may also resign as vice chairman
Ralston to meet with Cohen Monday morning
Weinberger is rooting for Ralston
Marine general considered possible pick
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June 8, 1997
Web posted at: 7:28 p.m. EDT (2328 GMT)

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Pentagon officials and others surveyed by CNN say they expect Air Force Gen. Joseph Ralston to withdraw as a candidate for chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and he may resign as vice chairman as well.

"I think that's one of the things you have to speculate about, whether he should continue to serve in his current post," a senior official told CNN Sunday.

The four-star general, 56, was believed to be the leading choice to succeed Gen. John Shalikashvili as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff when Shalikashvili retires later this year.

But Ralston's admission that he had an affair with a CIA employee while separated from his wife in the 1980s has raised a firestorm of protest. Some, such as Rep. Steve Buyer, a Republican from Indiana, believe the affair renders Ralston unworthy of the nation's top military job.

"I believe that such a transgression undermines the good order and discipline of the military," Buyer said Sunday. "... It places the nomination in doubt in the U.S. Senate."

The Pentagon has been accused of having a double standard when it comes to dealing with such cases. Lt. Kelly Flinn, the nation's first woman bomber pilot, was forced to leave the Air Force last month to avoid a court-martial on charges of adultery, having sex with an enlisted man and lying about the matter.

In a column written for Newsweek magazine, Flinn says the treatment she received was indicative of that double standard. "He (Ralston) got plenty of support and guidance" from the very beginning, she wrote. "His superiors made an attempt to talk to him on a personal basis," she said.

"I sure wish that had happened to me," she wrote.

Ralston to meet with Cohen Monday morning

Ralston is scheduled to meet with Cohen and Shalikashvili at 8 a.m. Monday. A spokesman for Ralston told CNN he expected Ralston to make a public statement shortly after that meeting.

A number of senior Pentagon officials believe Ralston will withdraw his name from consideration for chairman.

"Under the circumstances Senate confirmation will be an extremely difficult fight," said one source. "He knows that."

Rep. Jane Harman, a California Democrat and member of the House National Security Committee, said she, too, thought Ralston would withdraw.

"In this circus atmosphere, he (would be) putting the country first and sparing Secretary Cohen and the president some anguish and pain in terms of considering his nomination."

Weinberger is rooting for Ralston

Former Secretary of Defense Casper Weinberger, appearing on "ABC This Week," said he hoped Ralston would not withdraw and that President Clinton would support him.

"He's had a heroic record in Vietnam and elsewhere," Weinberger said. "He's a superb officer, and I think he would make a very fine chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff."

Pentagon officials stress that no one has yet talked to Ralston about his plans. He was expected to spend Sunday talking to friends and advisers, reviewing news coverage and considering his options.

"There are two ways to read this," said one official. "These are simply the predictions of many in the Pentagon. On the other hand, it may be their hope that Ralston will step aside and end this."

If Ralston were to step down, he might not be able to retire as a four-star general. It would be up to Congress to approve it, and that could be a factor in prompting Ralston to stay.

Marine general considered possible pick

Ralston was regarded as a "status-quo" selection for chairman, while Marine Gen. Jack Sheehan, the U.S. Atlantic Commander and an advocate of reform, was Cohen's pick for vice chairman. But sources say Sheehan has already told Cohen he would not accept the vice chairman's job.

Should Ralston decide not to stay, sources say it doesn't necessarily mean Sheehan will be Cohen's choice to replace Shalikashvili.

"Having opted for a status-quo guy the first time, it's unlikely Cohen will go for the 'change' candidate the second time," said a person familiar with the process.

Pentagon sources say Cohen would look at an expanded list of candidates before making a nomination. One factor will be whether he must replace Ralston as vice chairman.

Among those mentioned as possible Joint Chiefs chairman are Army Gen. Wes Clark, just tapped to be NATO commander; Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Charles Krulak; retiring NATO commander Army Gen. George Joulwan; and Air Force Gen. Howell Estes, commander of the U.S. Space Command.

Correspondents Jamie McIntyre and Louise Schiavone and Reuters contributed to this report.

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