The Melting Point

While most generals’ memoirs are poorly crafted and self-serving, readers will find that Melting Point is an invaluable and smartly written book. McKenzie looks back at his time as Commander, U.S. Central Command during several Middle East conflicts with an emphasis on the campaign in Afghanistan. Melting Point contains insights on the endgame in Kabul for those trying to understand how that war unraveled. Any professional who aspires to higher command or expects to provide strategic and operational staff support to a senior commander will benefit from a study of this work."—War on the Rocks

"After three grueling years as the commander of CENTCOM and 42 years of service, General Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr. refused to rest in his retirement. Instead, he wrote a valuable book for military professionals, Middle East scholars, and civil-military relations experts. McKenzie presents an honest, often critical, assessment of military and policy leaders, including himself.... McKenzie’s valuable advice to future strategic military leaders should be required reading at senior levels of professional military education. Military advice matters because it is rooted in experience, judgment, and the practice of war."—Parameters

"If we didn’t have a leatherneck warrior-scholar like Frank McKenzie, we would have to invent one. Through the lens of his last twenty years of military service Frank brings us to a realization of the complexities of a senior officer’s life. From the sausage-making of defense policy to the gut-wrenching decisions that affect young service members’ lives, General McKenzie bares it all. Unsparing in his observations, even when it affects himself negatively, he makes clear to us the understanding that life as a combatant commander is one of constant second guessing, no spare time, and a constant lack of perfect knowledge. He lived with terrorism and terrorists and was the decision maker for the notable elimination of several of the most bloody minded of these miscreants. General McKenzie makes it clear that, notwithstanding the improvements in intelligence and communication, a commander needs today what military leaders have always relied upon—experience, trust in subordinates, and a gut instinct. Thank God General McKenzie was there for us at a most perilous time for this nation and followed his gut."—Ambassador Richard Armitage, former Deputy Secretary of State and Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs

"The author, a Marine Corps general, was the commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East, a theater-level combatant commander during periods of high tension with Iran and the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. He gives his perspective of high-level decision-making during crises, most notably the elimination of Iranian Quds-force commander Soleimani and the U.S. exit from Afghanistan. He points out the durability of U.S. civilian-military relations and the uniqueness of the combatant commander’s responsibilities. His discussion of the execution of policy decisions during his tenure as commander, U.S. Central Command, is a must-read for anyone interested in the long wars of the early 21st century."—Seapower 

"A deeply relevant and important book in understanding contemporary national security policy and US relations with the nations that fall under CENTCOM’s remit, The Melting Point is the spiritual successor to Into the Storm and Battle Ready for how it places the reader into the mind of a senior military leader and offers greater understanding of the role of the military and what it can do. It is a welcome contribution of supreme relevance and will be of use to policymaker