The CGSC Foundation’s Simons Center hosted an Arter-Rowland National Security Forum luncheon event on Nov. 14, 2024, at the at the Carriage Club in Kansas City. Retired Army Colonel Kevin Benson, Ph.D., headlined the event with his presentation entitled “Reflections on the Opening of the War in Iraq.”

Simons Center Director Bob Ulin welcomed the ARNSF members and their guests. After lunch, he introduced Benson.

(Top photo and above) Colonel (Ret.) Kevin Benson, Ph.D., author and adjunct scholar for the Modern War Institute at West Point, provides a presentation entitled “Reflections on the Opening of the War in Iraq” during the Arter-Rowland National Security Forum luncheon event on Nov. 14, 2024, at the Carriage Club in Kansas City.

Benson, who served as the director of plans for the Third U.S. Army from July 2002 to July 2003, shared his experiences during the opening of the war in Iraq. His observations counter the perception that there was no consideration before the war of what should be done after coalition forces arrived in Baghdad and removed Saddam Hussein. He discussed the extensive planning efforts aimed at achieving the policy objectives for Iraq set by the Bush administration, which he described as overly focused on “De-Ba’athification,” or in plain terms, the effort to remove Saddam Hussein’s Ba’ath Party influence on the nation. As described in his recently published book, Expectation of Valor, Benson provided his perspective on the challenges dealing with Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, as well as the daily secure video teleconferences with U.S. Central Command and the Pentagon.

After the presentation and a question and answer period, Ulin presented Benson with a CGSC Foundation/Simons Center coffee mug in appreciation for his time with the Forum.

For more photos see the CGSC Foundation Flickr album

Colonel (Ret.) Kevin Benson served in the U.S. Army as a commander and general staff officer for 30 years. He was the director of plans for Third U.S. Army and the Combined Forces Land Component Command at the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom, from July 2002 to July 2003. His final assignment in the U.S. Army was director, School of Advanced Military Studies, at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. He writes for professional journals and websites ranging from Parameters, Military Review, and Army magazine, to Strategy Bridge and the Modern War Institute. He reviews books for Army magazine.

Benson is a 1977 graduate of the United States Military Academy. His military education includes the U.S. Army Armor Officer Basic Course (1977); U.S. Marine Corps Amphibious Warfare School (1983); U.S. Army Command and General Staff College (1991); and the School of Advanced Military Studies (1992). He also attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Security Studies Program as a War College Fellow in 2001. He earned a doctorate in American history from the University of Kansas in 2010. He was a Sen. Robert J. Dole Fellow at the Dole Institute of Politics in 2011. He was appointed an adjunct scholar at the Modern War Institute at West Point in 2020.

The Arter-Rowland National Security Forum (ARNSF) is led by the CGSC Foundation’s Simons Center and is an exclusive professional information sharing and networking forum for those interested in keeping abreast of relevant information about national security issues.

Members of the Forum and their guests meet periodically at guest speaker events in downtown Kansas City. National and regional guest speakers representing all elements of national power (Diplomatic, Informational, Military and Economic) highlight the meetings. The Forum is nonpartisan, but elected government officials may present from time to time.

The Forum is named after Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Robert Arter, Founding Chairman of the CGSC Foundation, and Mr. Landon Rowland, the Foundation’s first major donor who was well-known in Kansas City for his keen interest in national security issues and his leadership in business and philanthropy.

ARNSF events are only open to ARNSF members and their guests. If you are not a member but are interested in joining, contact Bob Ulin at rulin@cgscf.org or visit the Forum page on www.thesimonscenter.org for more information.

The Arter-Rowland National Security Forum is an exclusive professional information sharing
and networking event exclusively for select invitees of the CGSC Foundation and its Simons Center.