A Rather Extreme Approach to Downsizing

At our leadership briefing this morning with Joint Chiefs Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen, one audience member rose to ask him about how Defense civilian employees are viewed by the public. But as you can see from a transcript of the exchange, he briefly thought she was suggesting rather dire mistreatment of the civilian workforce:

Questioner: Six to one is the ratio of contractors to civil servants. Yet civil servants continue to endure public opprobrium. What is your position on the total force structure, and who should be doing the work of the government?

Mullen: Civil servants continue to endure what?

Questioner: Opprobrium. A lot of civil servant-bashing.

Mullen: A pogrom?

Questioner: Opprobrium.