Best Defense

Thomas E. Ricks' daily take on national security.

Quote of the day

Marine Maj. Gen. John Kelly on two Marines who were killed stopping a truck bomb heading for the front gate of their outpost in Ramadi: "No time to talk it over; no time to call the lieutenant; no time to think about their own lives or even the American and Iraqi lives they were protecting," ...

Marine Maj. Gen. John Kelly on two Marines who were killed stopping a truck bomb heading for the front gate of their outpost in Ramadi: "No time to talk it over; no time to call the lieutenant; no time to think about their own lives or even the American and Iraqi lives they were protecting," Kelly said to Tony Perry of the Los Angeles Times. "More than enough time, however, to do their duty. They never hesitated or tried to escape." He said the two, Cpl. Jonathan Yale, 21, and Lance Cpl. Jordan Haerter, 19, will receive the Navy Cross posthumously next year.

Marine Maj. Gen. John Kelly on two Marines who were killed stopping a truck bomb heading for the front gate of their outpost in Ramadi: "No time to talk it over; no time to call the lieutenant; no time to think about their own lives or even the American and Iraqi lives they were protecting," Kelly said to Tony Perry of the Los Angeles Times. "More than enough time, however, to do their duty. They never hesitated or tried to escape." He said the two, Cpl. Jonathan Yale, 21, and Lance Cpl. Jordan Haerter, 19, will receive the Navy Cross posthumously next year.

Thomas E. Ricks covered the U.S. military from 1991 to 2008 for the Wall Street Journal and then the Washington Post. He can be reached at ricksblogcomment@gmail.com. Twitter: @tomricks1

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