How McChrystal And Co. Blew The Rolling Stone Profile

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A general, his aides, and one reporter, stuck on a bus from Paris to Berlin, and drinking case after case of Bud Light Lime …

That’s the movie trailer version of how Gen. Stanley McChrystal ended up with a trainwreck of a profile in Rolling Stone, in which he and his aides ended up on the record trashing President Obama and virtually every other important civilian decision-maker on the Afghan war.

Rolling Stone‘s Michael Hastings, still in Afghanistan, told NBC that it all started with the eruption of Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokull volcano — which prolonged Hastings’ time with McChrystal and his team. The ash cloud forced the general to take a bus from Paris, where he celebrated an anniversary with his wife, gave a speech. and met with French officials, to Berlin.

Hastings told NBC that McChrystal and co. were boozing on the bus “the whole way.” He added: “They let loose.” The general may now lose his job as a result.

We also learned from Hastings’ story that McChrystal’s favorite beverage is Bud Light Lime, so we can only assume the bus was well stocked. The real question is where in Paris would one procure such a wondrous delicacy (and which foul-mouthed staffer’s job it was).

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