Word: scowcrofts
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...Much of Scowcroft's success comes from his affinity with Bush. The men are only nine months apart in age. They often spend three or four hours a day together, popping into each other's offices and easily lapsing into conversations about world affairs. Both were military pilots in the 1940s, with Bush flying for the Navy and Scowcroft, a Utah native and West Point graduate, for the Air Force. Like Bush, Scowcroft came close to losing his life when his P-51B Mustang made a forced landing in a New Hampshire forest. The impact broke his back...
They are also both joggers, fishermen, golfers and workaholics; Scowcroft puts in such rigorous hours that he often jogs after midnight and involuntarily catches up on his sleep by dozing during meetings. Both men enjoy teasing each other. Bush once placed an exploding chalk golf ball on Scowcroft's tee, and then erupted in laughter when his adviser pounded it into a million particles...
Above all, they share a distaste for ideology and a willingness to circumvent the bureaucracy when a bold stroke is needed. "I don't have a quick, innovative mind," says Scowcroft. "I don't automatically think of good new ideas. What I do better is pick out good ideas from bad ideas." Bush seems to believe that Scowcroft knows the difference...
National Security Adviser Brent Scowcroft, who had been pushing "de- MIRVing" for years, persuaded Bush to go the State Department one better and propose a ban on all MIRVed ICBMs, stationary as well as mobile. Scowcroft sold Bush on the idea, but Defense Secretary Dick Cheney objected so strenuously that the plan was dropped...
...Moscow. Since the Soviets have many more MIRVed ICBMs than does the U.S., Gorbachev's military advisers are likely to tell him that a prohibition on such weapons is a net disadvantage to them. Therefore, instead of merely accepting the U.S. proposal, the Soviets may carry the logic of Scowcroft's position a step further; they may say, If we're going to be truly serious about de-MIRVing, why stop at the water's edge? Why not ban MIRVs on submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) as well...