HQ$History - United States Special Operations Command

the impact on its people, the command carefully
reviewed requests for these personnel and
tracked their rate of deployment to prevent overuse.
On 5 November 1997, General Peter J.
Schoomaker assumed command of USSOCOM,
and like General Downing, he brought a wealth
of experience in special operations. In addition
to commanding SOF tactical units, he served as
commander of both JSOC and USASOC. Like
his predecessors, he faced unique challenges as
the command prepared for the twenty-first century.
General Schoomaker’s top priority was to
prepare the SOF community for change in order
to remain relevant to national security requirements.
To that end, he initiated or accelerated
numerous projects, to include the headquarters
reorganization; planning, programming and
acquisition enhancements; and integrating the
components into one resourcing and acquisition
team. During his tenure, SOF participated in
the transition from JOINT GUARD to JOINT
FORGE in Bosnia-Herzegovina, DESERT
THUNDER in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia (to
thwart Saddam Hussein’s attempt to restrict
United Nations (UN) inspectors’ freedom of
movement), and numerous contingencies and
peacetime engagements. SOF also played crucial
roles in ALLIED FORCE, the operation that
forced Serbian forces out of Kosovo, and JOINT
GUARDIAN, which enforced the Kosovo peace
agreement.
General Charles R. Holland assumed command
of USSOCOM on 27 October 2000, having
served as the vice commander of United States
Air Force (USAF) in Europe. As Commander
USSOCOM, he anticipated “staying the course,”
to implement changes made by previous commanders
and to continue SOF’s key roles in
operations around the world. He emphasized
that SOF had to address the seams and friction
points with the services that had caused operational
difficulties. For example, he instructed
Air Force Special Operations Command
(AFSOC) to continue working with the Air Force
to resolve differences observed in the Air War
over Serbia. But, 9/11 would completely reorder
both USSOCOM and General Holland’s priorities.
“On September 11th, enemies of freedom
committed an act of war against our
country. Americans have known wars—
but for the past 136 years, they have been
wars on foreign soil, except for one
Sunday in 1941. Americans have known
the casualties of war—but not at the center
of a great city on a peaceful morning.
Americans have known surprise attacks—
but never before on thousands of civilians.
All of this was brought upon us in a single
day—and night fell on a different
world, a world where freedom itself is
under attack.”
President George W. Bush
20 September 2001
Following the horrific terrorist attacks of
9/11, President Bush told the nation that “every
necessary weapon of war” would be used to disrupt
and defeat the global terror network. He
cautioned that this war would entail a lengthy
General Peter J. Schoomaker
USCINCSOC 1997-2000
10
General Charles R. Holland, USCINCSOC
2000-2003