McMaster Steps Down

One of our favorite heroes from Iraq, often featured here, has left command of the 3rd ACR:

The most famous commander of the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment since World War II hero George S. Patton will hand over the reins of the unit in a ceremony today at Fort Carson. Col. H.R. McMaster...has led the regiment since 2004, earning presidential praise for tactics that drove insurgents from the city of Tal Afar...

President Bush praised McMaster’s success in Tal Afar. “The example of Tal Afar gives me confidence in our strategy, because in this city we see the outlines of the Iraq that we and the Iraqi people have been fighting for: a free and secure people who are getting back on their feet, who are participating in government and civic life, and who have become allies in the fight against the terrorists,” Bush said in a speech in March, soon after the 3rd ACR returned to Fort Carson.

McMaster’s next assignment is a think-tank job at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London, where he’s charged with devising better tactics to battle terrorism. His successor in command of the 3rd ACR is Col. Michael Bills, who comes from the Army’s Human Resources Command.

We wish you well Colonel, and thank you for your service!