Walter E. Piatt | |
|---|---|
| Allegiance | United States |
| Service/ | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1979–1983 1987–present |
| Rank | Lieutenant General |
| Commands held | 10th Mountain Division Joint Multinational Training Command United States Army Infantry Center 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division |
| Battles/wars | Iraq War War in Afghanistan Operation Inherent Resolve |
| Awards | Army Distinguished Service Medal (3) Defense Superior Service Medal Legion of Merit (5) Bronze Star Medal (5) |
Walter E. Piatt is a United States Army lieutenant general who currently serves as the 57th Director of the Army Staff. He enlisted in the army in 1979 and served four years as an infantryman. After graduating from Lock Haven University, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1987. Prior to assuming his current position Piatt was the Commanding General, 10th Mountain Division at Fort Drum.[1] His other assignments as a general officer include serving as the 52nd Chief of Infantry; Deputy Commanding General-Support, 10th Mountain Division; Commander, Joint Multinational Training Command; Deputy Commanding General, United States Army Europe; and director of Operations/director, Rapid Equipment Fielding, Army Rapid Capabilities Office.[2]
| Start | End | Assignment |
|---|---|---|
| May 2019 | Present | Director of the Army Staff, United States Army, Washington, DC |
| Apr 17 | May 19 | Commanding General, 10th Mountain Division (Light) and Fort Drum, Fort Drum, New York and OPERATION INHERENT RESOLVE, Iraq |
| Sep 16 | Apr 17 | Director of Operations/Director, Rapid Equipment Fielding, Army Rapid Capabilities Office, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Acquisition, Logistics and Technology), Washington, DC |
| Mar 15 | Jul 16 | Director, Operations, Readiness and Mobilization, G-3/5/7, United States Army, Washington, DC |
| Jul 14 | Mar 15 | Deputy Commanding General, United States Army Europe, Germany |
| Jun 13 | Jul 14 | Commanding General, Joint Multinational Training Command, United States Army Europe, Germany |
| Jun 12 | Jun 13 | Deputy Commanding General (Support), 10th Mountain Division (Light), Fort Drum, New York |
| Rank | Date |
|---|---|
| Lieutenant General | 30 May 2019 |
| Major General | 02 Mar 2015 |
| Brigadier General | 02 Oct 2012 |
Prior to January 6, Pentagon officials repeatedly asked city and federal official if they needed assistance from the D.C. National Guard, but only the Mayor of Washington, D.C. requested assistance of 340 unarmed service members.[5][6] At approximately 2:20 p.m. on January 6, LTG Piatt joined a phone call with Washington, D.C. leaders, Capitol Police leaders, the D.C. National Guard and others as the violent attack on the capitol was unfolding.[7] The Hill reported that Piatt said on the call that the Secretary of the Army was meeting with the Secretary of Defense to seek approval of the request for assistance. He also explained that he was not the decision maker and that no one was denying the request for assistance.[8] The New York Times reported that during Congressional testimony February 23, 2021, former Capitol security leaders provided conflicting accounts of the request for the National Guard, reflecting the confusion of the event and the complexity of requesting Guard assistance.[9]
On January 6, 2021, during the storming of the United States Capitol and an hour and a half after the west side defensive perimeter had been breached,[10] according to Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund and DC National Guard leader Maj. Gen. William J. Walker, Piatt critically delayed or ignored Sund's request for National Guard support, stating, "I don't like the visual of the National Guard standing a police line with the Capitol in the background", despite this being a stark contrast to the protests of the previous year.[11][12]
On March 8, retired Army Lt. Gen Russel Honoré, whom House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) tasked with leading the security review, identified that the U.S. Capitol Police are too “understaffed, insufficiently equipped, and inadequately trained” — and woefully lacking in intelligence capabilities.
On June 15, 2021 Piatt told the House Committee on Oversight and Reform that Army officials “all immediately understood the gravity of the situation” after receiving a request in a conference call for “urgent and immediate support” at the Capitol, but that they still needed to develop a plan.[13]
On November 16, 2021, the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General released their findings on the actions that took place to prepare for and respond to protests at the U.S. Capitol.[14] The report concluded that that the actions the DoD took before January 6, 2021, to prepare for the planned protests in Washington, D.C., on January 5 and 6, 2021, were appropriate.[15]
In early December 2021, Colonel Earl G. Matthews released a rebuttal to the DoDIG report that accused LTG Piatt of making willful distortions of the events of January 6, describing Piatt and General Charles A. Flynn as "absolute and unmitigated liars" and of giving “perjured testimony before Congress”.[16]
While a colonel (brigade commander, 25th Infantry Division) Piatt's unit had some 200 volunteers participate in a mindfulness study by Amishi Jha and Elizabeth Stanley in the 2010s;[17] the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences notes that this mental practice "teaches the brain to stay 'in the moment'" which helps Soldiers reduce the pain and stress of PTSD.[17]
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