CBS News
Transcript: Ret. Gen. Frank McKenzie on “Face the Nation,” Feb. 4, 2024
The following is a transcript of an interview with retired Gen. Frank McKenzie, former chief of U.S. Central Command, that aired on Feb. 4, 2024.
MARGARET BRENNAN: For some analysis on the situation in the Middle East, we turn now to the former head of U.S. Central Command, General Frank McKenzie. He was in charge of U.S. forces in the Middle East for three years under the Trump and Biden administrations. Welcome back.
GEN. FRANK MCKENZIE: Good to be here, Margaret.
MARGARET BRENNAN: General, how would you assess the impact of the strikes so far, which you just heard National Security Advisor Sullivan say is just the beginning?
GEN. MCKENZIE: I- I think that’s pretty accurate. I don’t think we know yet. I think it’s going to require more work. And I think we do need to have an understanding of what we want as an end state. For- for me as the operational commander, back when I was in command, it would be that they cease attacks on our bases and- and operating positions in Iraq and Syria. That’s a pretty clear end state. You know, the problem is, there’s a lot of talk about Ira- Iran actually not giving the order for this specific attack. And there’s some truth to that, because around 2020, Iran began to give blanket clearance to these groups to attack United States positions in Iraq and Syria. So they now operate under a- a sort of procedure where there’s no mother may I, they have the opportunity to generate these attacks without directly going back to Iran. And while Iran is certainly ultimately complicit because they provide the weapons, they provide the training, they provide the funding, in some cases they probably provide some targeting assistance, it’s hard sometimes to find that track back for a specific attack, because of the way Iran has ingeniously designed their command and control process.
MARGARET BRENNAN: That is important context on the question of whether they have control or not. You, before this devastating attack that killed three American service people, you were on the record in a Wall Street Journal editorial, saying the U.S.- you referenced the President saying the U.S. doesn’t want to escalate and you said, “Unfortunately, it is the U.S. that is being deterred, not Iran and its proxies. To reset deterrence, we must apply violence Tehran understands.” What would that look like?
GEN. MCKENZIE: Margaret, and I- I first of all, I still stand by those words. I think this particular campaign we’re on, we’ve done two things that I think undercut us. First of all, there’s a continual reference in our policy statements about not wanting to escalate. Look, I agree, escalation is dangerous. But if the greatest fear is escalation, we should leave. We can reduce the danger of escalation to zero if we leave. Clearly, we have higher priorities than preventing escalation. So we- we should recognize that. The second part is, we have explicitly taken Iran itself off the list of potential targets in this campaign. I am not advocating for striking Iran. I am advocating that they need to be in the space of possible targets, so that they- so that they’re held at risk. What happens when we say, well, we’re going to strike targets in Iraq and Syria, we’re not going to strike targets in Iran, at least kinetically, targets in Iran, that gives them aid and comfort. That’s not a good thing to do. And what we want to do is induce in their minds and their cognitive space, a concern about continuing on this path and what it might mean to them. Look, Iranian foreign policy is built on three things. It’s built on preservation of the theocratic regime, number one, above all others. Number two, the destruction of the state of Israel. Number three, the ejection of the United States from the region. Number one is a point of strength for them, but also a point of weakness. And I believe we are consciously neglecting it in this campaign.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Four years ago, they were forces under your command who killed Iran’s Quds Force Commander Qasem Suleimani, when he was in Iraq, from Iran. His successor doesn’t seem to be quite as influential and there are some pointing to the leader of Hezbollah now as choreographing the militias. Is this the outcome you expected when the Trump administration decided to take Suleimani off the battlefield?
GEN. MCKENZIE: Well, Margaret, it’s important to understand, we took Soleimani off the battlefield because he felt- we felt he was preparing an imminent attack on the- on our embassy and other locations in the Middle East. So certainly, there were long term considerations, but he was a clear and present immediate danger, and we took steps to- to- to remove him from the battlefield because of that. Now, what’s developed after that, you’re right, the- the IRGC Quds Force has not been able to get into Iraq and bring people together as Soleimani was, because his successor is a much weaker military leader than- than Soleimani. I- it’s unclear to me that- that Nasrullah, the leader of Lebanese Hezbollah, is filling that space. I think the most interesting thing about Lebanese Hezbollah and Nasrullah is the fact he has not chosen to engage in large scale conflict with Israel right now, because of what’s going on down in Gaza. And I think that’s- that’s important to look at. It’s like the dog that didn’t bark in the night. That can be important. He’s instead chosen to hold- hold back, to observe the situation. And I think that’s an important thing that we should continue to- we should continue to take a look at, because they’re the largest non-state military entity in the world, with thousands of weapons that could cause great pain to Israel. On the other hand, Israel has vast resources they could apply against Lebanese Hezbollah, should this war ensue. And I don’t think LH wants that war. Now they may be- they may be influencing events in Syria and Iraq. That’s just not known to me at this time. I think it’s more of a hodgepodge of efforts there. But I do believe ultimately, Iran is clearly behind it.
MARGARET BRENNAN: U.S. intelligence estimates Israeli forces have killed about 20 to 30% of Hamas fighters since October, that is far short of destroying Hamas. How would you judge the level of success of Israel’s campaign?
GEN. MCKENZIE: It’s very limited so far. You know, I think they set themselves a goal of removing the political echelon, and the military leadership echelon of- of Hamas, when they went in. They have not been successful to date at doing either. And these campaigns are nonlinear. So you don’t necessarily go from day to day, you could have a big breakthrough here. And things could change suddenly on the ground. But I think the larger issue, at least for me looking at it is, you have to have a theory for what it’s going to look like when it’s over. You know, what’s- what- what’s going to happen in Gaza, and we’ve had some people that have talked about it earlier on the show today. And I think it’s important to consider that. You need- you need a vision of an end state when you begin a military campaign, because everything you do then subtracts or adds to your ability to get to that point. And I would argue that needs to be something like a two state solution. You’re gonna need help from the Arab nations in the region to go in there and- and do something in- in Gaza. I think Israeli occupation would be the least desirable of all outcomes.
MARGARET BRENNAN: General McKenzie, thank you for your expertise. We’ll be back in a moment.
CBS News
Sexual harassment is as common today for women in the workplace as 5 years ago, study finds
Women in the U.S. now constitute almost 6 in 10 college graduates and half the labor market, yet many continue to experience bias and other headwinds in the workplace, including a rate of sexual harassment that hasn’t improved in five years, according to a new study from consulting firm McKinsey and advocacy group Lean In.
The groups’ “Women in the Workplace” report, which is marking its 10th year of publication, finds that while women in Corporate America have made some gains, there has also been a remarkable lack of progress on a number of fronts, from rates of early career promotion that have continued to lag men’s to widespread sexual harassment.
The research provides a sober assessment of the challenges that remain after years of efforts by women’s advocates, corporations and the #MeToo movement to improve the workplace for women. At the same time, a recent push against diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives threatens to derail the progress women have made climbing the ladder.
“I would call it a mixed scorecard for Corporate America,” Rachel Thomas, the co-founder and CEO of Lean In, told CBS MoneyWatch. “The fact that there has been a decline in commitment to gender and racial diversity has been concerning — we need [corporations] to lean into the momentum, and they are at risk of stepping back.”
Recently, major companies including Ford Motor, Lowe’s and John Deere have retreated from diversity in the face of conservative criticism.
The new study found a growing gap between young men and young women when it comes to prioritizing gender and racial diversity, with only 4 in 10 men under 30 currently supporting these efforts, down from about half of young men in 2019. About 7 in 10 young women support prioritizing diversity, little changed from five years ago, the study found.
“There is a pushback in the zeitgeist about diversity equity and inclusion,” Thomas said.
Sexual harassment remains widespread
The findings also show that sexual harassment remains commonplace in Corporate America, with about 40% of working women experiencing such treatment during their careers, ranging from sexist jokes to having obscene comments directed toward them, the study found.
Women under 30 were just as likely to have experienced sexual harassment as women over 30, a finding that signals the issue hasn’t diminished in scale over the past several years, the study noted.
“We don’t see movement with young women in how frequently they describe experiences of sexual harassment in relation to their older peers,” Alexis Krivkovich, senior partner at McKinsey, told CBS MoneyWatch. “It’s incredibly troubling.”
Sexual harassment remains persistent despite the rise of the #MeTo movement in 2017, with a number of prominent women coming forward to disclose the abuse they had endured at work and demanding changes in the workplace. Still, only about half of women today express confidence that their employers would effectively deal with harassment if they reported it, little changed from 2018, the study noted.
“The fact that women are so concerned that if they reported it, it wouldn’t be effectively managed likely leads to a number of incidents not being accounted for,” Krivkovich said.
“Women have stayed ambitious”
Despite these obstacles, women have made gains entering corporate leadership roles, Krivkovich said. For instance, women now make up 29% of C-suite roles, or top executive positions such as chief executive or chief financial officer, up from 17% in 2015, when the Women in the Workplace report debuted.
“We know women have stayed ambitious over the last 10 years despite all the headwinds,” Thomas said.
But, Krivkovich added, “when we get under the hood, it’s clear those gains are really fragile.”
For one, women are still stumbling on the “broken rung,” or failing to get a promotion out of their entry-level jobs at the same rate as men, the study found. For every 100 men who were promoted to a manager role in 2024, 81 women were elevated — little changed from the 79 women who got a similar promotion in 2018, the study found.
Young women are most at risk of suffering from ageism, with older managers biased against them because they are seen as lacking experience, while young men are often judged by a different yardstick, Thomas and Krivkovich said.
“We know from social science research that we promote men on potential and women on prior experience,” Thomas said.
While corporations must make changes to ensure that women are given the same opportunities as men, such as by implementing blind resume reviews where the applicants’ genders or identities are hidden from managers, women can also take some steps to help themselves, Thomas and Krivkovich said.
“Don’t sit back and wait for things to unfold organically in terms of your sponsorship, your mentorship network, the presumption of your ambition and the opportunities that come your way,” Krivkovich said. “For all those things, you have to play a proactive role.”
Sean “Diddy” Combs has been taken into custody by federal authorities in New York, CBS News confirmed Monday night.
In recent months, the hip-hop mogul has faced multiple accusations of sexual abuse and physical violence. In March, Combs’ homes in Los Angeles and Miami were raided by Homeland Security Investigations agents and other law enforcement officers due to a possible ongoing sex trafficking investigation, U.S. officials said at the time, but no charges were filed then.
The charges against Combs on Monday were not immediately known.
“We are disappointed with the decision to pursue what we believe is an unjust prosecution of Mr. Combs by the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” Marc Agnifilo, an attorney for Combs, said in a statement. “Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs is a music icon, self-made entrepreneur, loving family man, and proven philanthropist who has spent the last 30 years building an empire, adoring his children, and working to uplift the Black community. He is an imperfect person but he Is not a criminal. To his credit Mr. Combs has been nothing but cooperative with this investigation and he voluntarily relocated to New York last week in anticipation of these charges. Please reserve your judgment until you have all the facts. These are the acts of an innocent man with nothing to hide, and he looks forward to clearing his name in court.”
Combs has faced a number of lawsuits in recent months involving allegations of sexual misconduct and violence. Combs and his representatives have denied all the accusations.
In May, Combs apologized for a security video aired by CNN that appeared to show him attacking Cassie, whose legal name is Casandra Ventura, in a Los Angeles hotel hallway in 2016. He said his behavior was “inexcusable” and he takes “full responsibility” for his actions.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
contributed to this report.
Watch CBS News
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.
