On Sunday, retired four star army general Stanley McChrystal appeared on “This Week” with Martha Raddatz. McChrystal talked frankly about his views of President Trump. He said that it was time to “take a stand” against “unacceptable” behavior, saying,
“What I would ask every American to do is again, stand in front of that mirror and say, what are we about?,” he continued. “Am I really willing to throw away or ignore some of the things that people do that are pretty unacceptable normally just because they accomplish certain other things that we might like. If we want to be governed by someone we wouldn’t do a business deal with because they’re their background is so shady, if we’re willing to do that then that’s in conflict with who I think we are. And so I think it’s necessary in those times to take a stand.”
McChrystal also said, referring to the president, “I don’t think he tells the truth.” And when Raddatz asked him whether he thinks the president is immoral, McChrystal said, “I think he is.”
McChrystal has been married to Annie Corcoran for over 40 years. They have one son. Here’s what you need to know about Stanley McChrystal’s wife and family:
1. McChrystal’s Father Was a Two-Star General in the Army
“And my wife helped me through this more than anything, because as I tell people, ‘She lives like she drives, without using the rear-view mirror,'” he said. t.co/3JlKAG3ODV
McChrystal was born in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, in 1954. He was the fourth of six children. His father, Major General Herbert McChrystal, was a two-star general. Herbert McChrystal served in Germany after World War Two and later served in the Pentagon. McChrystal’s grandfather was also a career soldier, fighting in World War One and eventually rising to command a regiment.
McChrystal told the Wall Street Journal that his parents instilled a strict sense of morality in him from a young age. He described his father as a modest, honest man. “I never once saw him take a parking place he shouldn’t,” he said.
2. McChrystal & His Wife Annie Live in Alexandria, Virginia
McChrystal married Annie Corcoran in 1977. The couple now live in Alexandria, Virginia. They have one adult son. McChyrstal speaks and writes fondly about his wife. He says that she laughs at his extremely discibplined lifestyle — he is so fanatical about improving his time management skills that he schedules time for his showers. He also describes their early life together, when they had to make do on a shoestring budget, with great warmth.
McChrystal’s memoir describes Annie as a supportive figure and a great source of strength. When McChrystal resigns his command in Afghanistan, he tells his wife, “our life in the Army was over.” He then writes of his wife’s response. “‘Good,’ she said, clear-eyed and strong. ‘We’ve always been happy, and we’ll always be happy.’ Looking into her blue yes, I knew she was right—and why.”
3. His Son Works for a Defense Intelligence Agency
McChrystal comes from a military family. His grandfather served in the army in World War One; his father was a two-star general. All of this siblings either joined the army themselves or married soldiers. McChrystal’s own son, Sam, works for a defense intelligence firm. McChrystal says that he has a close relationship with his son, who lives near him in Alexandria, Virginia.
4. His Wife Helped Him Change His Mind About Robert E. Lee
Four decades ago, his wife gave then-Lt. Stanley McChrystal a portrait of Robert E. Lee. Last year, he took it off the wall and threw it away:
McChrystal wrote a long piece in The Atlantic describing his evolving relationship with the Confederate general Robert E. Lee. When McChrystal was a young man, just starting out in his career, his wife Annie gave him a framed photograph of Lee. At that time, McChrystal says, he thought of Lee as a hero: he admired his discibpline and this dedication, and he didn’t give a lot of thought to the other ideals that Lee represented.
But McChrystal says that in 2017, after Charlottesville, Annie came to him and said that it was time to get rid of the picture. Here’s how McChrystal described their talk:
Then, after Charlottesville, in late spring of 2017, my wife, Annie — we’d been married 40 years at the time — she goes, “I think you ought to get rid of that picture.” And my first response was, “You gave it to me, honey. I could never get rid of that?” And she says, “No.” And I said, “Well, why?” And she says, “I think it’s communicating something you don’t think it is.” And I said, “What do you mean? He was a general officer. He just did his thing. He was a military guy, not a politician or something.” She said, “You may think that, but people in our home may not think that, and they may think you’re trying to communicate something deeper, white supremacy and all those things. So one morning, I took it down and literally threw it away. And it was a pretty emotional moment for me.
5. McChrystal Was Born Into an ‘Intense’ Military Family
McChrystal is well-known for his intensely disciplined life. Most mornings, he runs for about an hour; when he lived in New York City, he was famous for jogging the 12 miles to his office every day. The retired general eats only one meal a day and schedules everything in his life meticulously.
McChrystal’s sense of purpose may be hereditary. He comes from a military family; his father and grandfather were both in the army, and all of his brothers joined the army. His sister married a military man also. One of McChrystal’s sisters-in-law, Judy, described the family as “intense” and dedicated.