America's top Middle East war commander picked an odd moment for a new side project, and defense veterans can't believe it.
On Thursday, U.S. Central Command, the military headquarters running the Iran war, debuted a podcast called "Inside CENTCOM." Its first full episode features Adm. Brad Cooper, the command's leader, trading small talk about French fries, basketball and life aboard ships rather than the war itself.
In one exchange, host Fleet Master Chief Lateef Compton dubbed Cooper "the original fry guy." Cooper also shared his post-military plans. "When I retire...I'm going to be a professional free throw shooter," he said.
Former Rep. Elaine Luria (D-VA), a retired Navy commander, said she has known and served with Cooper for 25 years and respects him. But she didn't hold back.
"We are in the eighth month of a war in your AOR with thousands of Sailors deployed in harm's way that has had devastating impacts on the Navy and the country," Luria wrote on X. "The job is to win wars, not record podcasts. Read the room."
Ryan Evans, founder of the national security outlet War on the Rocks, said the podcast "tells you a lot about Cooper. None of it good." He warned that the country "might be on the eve of a renewal of major combat operations," yet "the commander apparently thinks now is a good time to launch a cringe podcast."
Christopher Mellon, a former deputy assistant secretary of defense for intelligence, wrote that Americans don't need to get familiar with their commander's quirks. Instead, he said, "the American people need our CENTCOM commander to execute his or her duties somberly, professionally, and excellently."
Others were blunter. "What are we doing?" asked The Tennessee Holler, an online news outlet. Defense writer Crispin Burke said the episode proves "not everyone with a microphone and a friend needs a podcast."
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