By Jen DiMascio
Presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani (R) last week beefed up his team of experts with the addition of retired Adm. Robert Natter as his senior military adviser.
Giuliani has amassed a long list of homeland security advisers, but compared with other candidates, lacked “oomph” in the number of retired Pentagon officials in his lineup. He added some punch with the addition of the former commander of the Navy’s Fleet Forces Command (FFC) and the Atlantic Fleet.
Natter and Giuliani worked closely together on Sept. 11, 2001. The four-star admiral deployed fighter aircraft and ships in response to an urgent request from Giuliani, who was mayor of a New York City under attack. New York also holds an annual fleet week, which is support by FFC ships.
In 2003, Natter retired after 41 years in the Navy. He now serves on the board of directors at BAE SYSTEMS and since leaving the service has stayed close to the political process.
During the last election cycle, Natter stumped for then-Rep. Curt Weldon (R), who eventually lost to Rep. Joe Sestak (D) in a fight for Pennsylvania’s 7th District, despite formerly serving as Sestak’s boss in the Navy.
Natter also served as a consultant and lobbyist to Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R), helping to limit cuts to the state’s military facilities in the Base Realignment and Closure process. He received more than $300,000 a year between 2004 and 2006 for his efforts, according to federal lobbying records.
Before his retirement, Natter was the deputy chief of naval operations for plans, policy and operations, chief of the Navy’s legislative affairs shop and a staff member for the House Armed Services Committee.
He may still enjoy close ties within the Pentagon. Natter graduated a year ahead of Adm. Michael Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, at the Naval Academy.
In addition to Natter, the campaign added several other members to its foreign policy team, bringing on Ruth Wedgwood, a member of the International Law and Organizations Advisory Board, and Kori Schake, a fellow at the Hoover Institution of Stanford University, and a chair of International Security Studies at the U.S. Military Academy. Schake previously worked for six years at the Pentagon.
The same day the Giuliani campaign announced the additions to his foreign policy staff, the candidate outlined some of his national security positions at an address to the Supreme Allied Command Transformation seminar in Norfolk, Va.
Giuliani called for a major expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to allow a number of nations, including Australia, India, Israel, Japan, Singapore and South Korea the opportunity to join.
The candidate said the next president should rebuild the military, starting with adding 10 brigades to the Army.
But Giuliani left no service in the cold, adding that the size of the Marine Corps should top 200,000, the Navy’s fleet should exceed 300 ships and include enough carriers to meet the demands of the century.
The Air Force needs new refueling tankers and an updated long-range bomber, Giuliani said, before staking out a position on military procurement that puts him squarely at odds with many of the Democratic candidates on the Lockheed Martin [LMT] F-22 fighter. Giuliani called for the “hand-wringing” over its future to end.
“We shouldn’t be abandoning it, even as we move ahead with the F-35,” he said.