It is an absolute honor to join the Blue Diamond once again, this time as your Commanding General. The history of this Division is simply awesome, and we should all be proud to have an opportunity to continue the legacy: a legacy of heroism, selfless service, unparalleled combat prowess, and the fierce Marine Corps bond that connects us all.
Mission: The 1st Marine Division is an adaptable expeditionary force in readiness, generating, deploying, and returning forces in support of global force management (GFM) and contingency response requirements and is prepared to deploy either as a scalable ground combat element (GCE), as a MEF (FWD), or as part of a Naval Task Force, in order to defeat peer, near-peer, and hybrid threats across the range of military operations.
Purpose: The Blue Diamond exists to fight and win our Nation’s battles, with a focus on peer adversaries. We will bias toward contributing to a naval campaign, yet retain the agility to respond to unexpected crises, or ‘such other missions as the President may direct.’ Importantly, we must be ready to deploy, fight, and win, today.
Our Bond: As Marines, our strength lies in the Esprit De Corps which comes from being a member of an elite fighting force. The bond we have with each other makes the sum greater than the parts. All we do should enhance this bond. Anything we do that detracts from it will not be tolerated. This means treating our fellow Marines, Sailors, and our civilian work force with the respect and dignity they have earned by being part of our organization. Hazing, racism, and sexual harassment will not be tolerated. We should treat every member of our team just as we want to be treated.
Discipline: A large part of the reason we are elite is because of the battlefield prowess we have shown over generations. Tactics change, weapons systems evolve, and our enemy varies, but the constant that has made us great is the discipline we display on the battlefield and in garrison. As America’s premiere fighting force, the 1st Marine Division MUST be disciplined and adhere to standards, always. Our Nation expects that of us. Let me be clear – treating people with dignity and respect does not mean allowing them to violate standards. I expect us to police each other, and I expect my leaders to be ruthless in ensuring our Marines are held accountable for not adhering to standards. In 38 years in the Marine Corps, I have never seen a unit that is disciplined in the field act undisciplined in garrison, or vice versa. Lack of discipline will get you killed in combat. We should never tolerate it in ourselves or others.
Proficiency: We must be brilliant in the basics of combined arms warfighting – techniques that have long made us feared by our enemies. At the same time, we must evolve our understanding of multi-domain combined arms to include new lethal technologies and non-lethal effects (cyber, space, electromagnetic spectrum, inform and influence operations). We must be able to sense, make sense, decide and act, closing kill chains faster than our enemies, and at the lowest level possible. We must minimize our own signature through dispersion, deception, camouflage, and concealment to make ourselves hard targets. Maintenance, supply, and medical functions are inseparable from combat readiness and are vital both in garrison and in the battlespace.
Pull happy from the front: You are a member of the Blue Diamond – be proud of who you are, what you do, and be proud of each other. The friendships you make here will be with you for a lifetime. Make time for your families, and experience all you can of the area while stationed here. Our work is incredibly important, so work hard but have fun. We only go around once; make the most of it while you can. Semper Fidelis.
Thomas B. Savage