Even before the execution of the raid that killed bin Laden, McRaven had been nominated to take command at SOCOM, relieving his friend and fellow SEAL, Adm. Eric Olson, USN (Ret.). He took over the post in the summer of 2011, and immediately began to put his own mark on the command. Perhaps the most noticeable thing that immediately came to the attention of journalists was the extremely open and informative atmosphere that McRaven promoted during his tenure at SOCOM. This writer had two opportunities to conduct interviews with the admiral, and personally got to speak with him face-to-face at a number of conferences and press events over the past three years. Each occasion was a learning experience, leaving me with the sense of having learned at the feet of a Zen master. McRaven has a habit of making journalists feel that way, and I suspect always will.

McRaven’s tenure as commander at SOCOM was both busy and productive, with a number of highlights that were important for the SOF community. 2013 saw the completion of the SOCOM-wide expansion first laid out in the last of the Bush-era Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR). Operationally, SOCOM was firing on all cylinders, conducting missions into restrictive time windows with mission templates unimaginable when the command was stood up in the 1980s. There is, quite frankly, no place on planet Earth today where SOCOM professionals cannot reach and discreetly affect an outcome. But while some men might be satisfied to maintain that level of professionalism and capability, McRaven was not one of them. He wanted more from SOCOM, and he appears to be about to get it.

For all the regard with which McRaven is held within the SOF community, not all of his ideas have resonated with leaders in the White House, Congress, or the Pentagon. For example, his proposals for greater SOCOM command, control, and communications with deployed SOF forces worldwide was not a particular favorite of Congress, which limited the scope of his ideas in this area

Realizing that the strong funding support SOCOM had enjoyed since 9/11 could not last forever, in 2011 McRaven laid out what he called his “Global SOF Network Initiative.” His concept was to use the various SOCOM components to help train and build up the SOF forces in Allied/partner nations in both capacity and capability. Then these greatly enhanced multinational SOF forces would be linked into a standing and ready “Global SOF Network,” able to rapidly deploy and respond to fast-breaking crises. It was a bold and visionary idea when he began to brief the concept back in 2011, and not everyone saw the value in it. For all the regard with which McRaven is held within the SOF community, not all of his ideas have resonated with leaders in the White House, Congress, or the Pentagon. For example, his proposals for greater SOCOM command, control, and communications with deployed SOF forces worldwide was not a particular favorite of Congress, which limited the scope of his ideas in this area.

Nevertheless, the growing number of powerful insurgencies across the globe has finally begun to shape U.S. national security policy. Despite having displayed a clear desire to disengage American military forces and bring them home, the Obama Administration appears to be rapidly realizing this is not entirely possible. So it is no surprise that during his recent commencement speech at West Point, President Barack Obama proposed the creation of the “Cooperative Training Program” (CTP), which he desires to be funded by a $5 billion “Cooperative Training Fund” (CTF). The creation of the CTP is another acknowledgement of the soundness of McRaven’s vision for the future of special operations.

So it was on Sept. 1, 2014, that McRaven took off his uniform for the last time, and became a civilian for the first time in his adult life. But before anyone gets the mistaken idea that McRaven will, go quietly into retirement, consider where he is headed as this is being written. Just prior to his retirement, McRaven accepted a position as Chancellor of the University of Texas System, the top leadership post in what is arguably one of the finest school systems in America today. And as if to make the point that we have not seen anything like the last of Adm. William H. McRaven in American public life, consider his recent commencement speech to the graduating class of 2014 at the University of Texas. It begins with the simple words, “Make your bed!” and has gone viral, with more than 3 million “views” since it was posted. Clearly, the legacy of McRaven still has many points to be written, and there is little doubt that America will be a better place for him writing it here.