A Clarification About Gen. McCaffrey’s West Point Status

I just got an email from West Point’s Col. Michael Meese, to whom Gen. McCaffrey addressed the Afghanistan memorandum I wrote about this morning. Meese — who apparently didn’t receive the emailed questions that I was led to understand were forwarded to him — clarified that McCaffrey was West Point’s Distinguished Professor of International Security Studies from 2001-2005 and then was named an adjunct professor. My understanding was that his West Point role was little more than an honorific, and so I regret the mistake. Meese adds:

As [McCaffrey] noted in the memorandum, his views are his own and do not necessarily reflect the position of West Point.

Hope this clears things up.