New Era Of The White House: Talk Slick, Get Fired.

Patraeus To Replace McChrystal As Commanding Officer

WASHINGTON—U.S. President Barack Obama accepted the resignation of the top U.S. commander and strategist of the Afghan war of his command Wednesday.Gen. David Petraeus, the head of the military's Central Command and the architect of the surge of forces into Iraq in 2007, will take over as the commanding general in Afghanistan, Mr. Obama said.

The shakeup followed comments by Gen. Stanley McChrystal and his aides disparaging the president, his national security team, and U.S. allies.

The decision to put Gen. Petraeus in command sends a signal that the president stands behind the counterinsurgency tactics pushed hard by Gen. McChrystal and championed by Gen. Petraeus.

Mr. Obama said his acceptance of Gen. McChrystal's recommendation didn't reflect a disagreement about strategy or personal insult. "We are in full agreement about our strategy," he said Wednesday, expressing "great admiration" for the general.

"But war is bigger than any one man," Mr. Obama said. He said the change was necessary to maintain a "unity of effort" in Afghanistan. "I welcome debate among my team, but I won't tolerate division."

The switch comes at a crucial time in the war: Thousands of troops are pouring into Afghanistan ahead of a planned operation in Kandahar that is seen as central to the campaign. The balance of surge forces are to arrive by August

Technically, as combatant commander in the military region that includes Afghanistan and the Middle East, Gen. Petraeus was Gen. McChrystal's commanding officer.

By agreeing to take command, Gen. Petraeus himself was showing resolve to see the counterinsurgency effort through in Afghanistan.

Gen. McChrystal, 55, faced a barrage of criticism from top U.S. officials for mocking his civilian bosses and administration colleagues in a magazine article.

Some of his strongest advocates failed to jump to his defense after copies of the profile in Rolling Stone, titled "The Runaway General," circulated ahead of its publication Friday.