Telegraph: Obama 'Furious' at McChrystal

This story in the UK's Telegraph adds a new dimension to the General's reported 25 minute meeting with the President aboard Air Force One in Copenhagen.

Apparently, McChrystal was being called on the carpet for being too free with his opinions:

According to sources close to the administration, Gen McChrystal shocked and angered presidential advisers with the bluntness of a speech given in London last week.

The next day he was summoned to an awkward 25-minute face-to-face meeting on board Air Force One on the tarmac in Copenhagen, where the president had arrived to tout Chicago's unsuccessful Olympic bid.

Gen James Jones, the national security adviser, yesterday did little to allay the impression the meeting had been awkward.

Asked if the president had told the general to tone down his remarks, he told CBS: "I wasn't there so I can't answer that question. But it was an opportunity for them to get to know each other a little bit better. I am sure they exchanged direct views."

An adviser to the administration said: "People aren't sure whether McChrystal is being naïve or an upstart. To my mind he doesn't seem ready for this Washington hard-ball and is just speaking his mind too plainly."

McChrystal would have to be an idiot not to know that generals don't cross Presidents. The legendary Five-Star General Douglas Macarthur was cashiered by President Truman for too bluntly speaking his mind about Korea and Red China.

Since McChrystal isn't an idiot, it follows that the situation in Afghanistan is every bit as dire as the general has said, and he is willing to take extraordinary risks with his career to protect his troops.