After retiring from the Marine Corps, Jones remained involved in national security and foreign policy issues. In 2007, Jones served as chairman of the Congressional Independent Commission on the Security Forces of Iraq,[1] which investigated the capabilities of theIraqi police and armed forces. In November 2007, he was appointed by theU.S. Secretary of State as special envoy forMiddle East security. He served as chairman of theAtlantic Council from June 2007 to January 2009, when he assumed the post ofNational Security Advisor which he held until resigning in November 2010.[2]
Jones owns the consulting firms Ironhand Security LLC and Jones Group International LLC.
From January 1976 to August 1979, Jones served in the Officer Assignments Section atHeadquarters Marine Corps, Washington, D.C. During this assignment, he was promoted tomajor in July 1977. Remaining in Washington, his next assignment was as the Marine Corps liaison officer to theUnited States Senate, where he served until July 1984. In this assignment, his first commander wasJohn McCain, then aUnited States Navycaptain.[6] He was promoted tolieutenant colonel in September 1982.[8]
Change of Command ceremony, January 13, 2003. SgtMajMCAlford McMichael (left) salutes as General Jones (center) relinquishes command to GeneralMichael Hagee (right)
Returning to the United States, Jones was advanced to the rank of major general in July 1994 and was assigned as commanding general,2nd Marine Division,Marine Forces Atlantic, Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune. Jones next served as director, Expeditionary Warfare Division (N85), Office of theChief of Naval Operations, during 1996, then as the deputy chief of staff for plans, policies, and operations, Headquarters Marine Corps, Washington, D.C. He was advanced tolieutenant general on July 18, 1996. His next assignment was as the military assistant to theSecretary of Defense.[7]
Jones examines an early MCCUU/MARPAT prototype during its testing phasesDeputy Defense SecretaryPaul D. Wolfowitz and Jones at press conference announcing Jones as EUCOM Commander
On April 21, 1999, Jones was nominated for appointment to the grade of general and assignment as the 32ndCommandant of the Marine Corps. He was promoted to general on June 30, 1999, and assumed the post on July 1, 1999. He served as commandant until January 2003, turning over the reins to GeneralMichael Hagee.[9]
Jones' personal decorations include (foreign and non-U.S. personal and unit decorations are in order of precedence based on military guidelines and award date):
The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to First Lieutenant James Logan Jones, Jr. (MCSN: 0-102030), United States Marine Corps Reserve, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action while serving as Commanding Officer of Company F, Second Battalion, Third Marines, THIRD Marine Division, in connection with operations against the enemy in the Republic of Vietnam. On the night of 27 May 1968, while occupying a defensive position near Khe Sanh, Company F, came under heavy attack by a numerically superior North Vietnamese Army force. During the ensuing fire fight, the company defensive perimeter was penetrated by enemy. Realizing the seriousness of the situation, First Lieutenant Jones unhesitatingly exposed himself to intense fire and fearlessly maneuvered across the fire-swept terrain while rapidly readjusting his defensive lines. Ignoring the enemy rockets and hand grenades impacting around him, he boldly directed supporting artillery fire on his position to halt the hostile force's attack. Continuing his determined efforts, he directed the delivery of accurate suppressive fire which repulsed numerous enemy attacks during the remainder of the night. His heroic actions and outstanding leadership inspired all who served with him and were instrumental in his unit accounting for 230 North Vietnamese soldiers confirmed killed. By his courage, aggressive fighting spirit and unwavering devotion to duty in the face of great personal danger, First Lieutenant Jones upheld the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and of the United States Naval Service.[18]
Following his retirement from the military, Jones became president of the Institute for 21st Century Energy,[20] an affiliate of theUS Chamber of Commerce;[20] he also served as chair of the board of directors of theAtlantic Council of the United States from June 2007[21] until January 2009, when he assumed the post of National Security Advisor.[22] Jones also served as a member of the guiding coalition for theProject on National Security Reform, as well as chairman of the Independent Commission on the Iraqi Security Forces.[23] He was a member of theboard of directors ofThe Boeing Company from June 21, 2007, to December 15, 2008, serving on the company's Audit and Finance Committees.[24][25] Jones was also a member of the board of directors ofCross Match Technologies, a privately held biometric solutions company, from October 2007 to January 2009.[26][27]
Jones was employed on the board of trustees of theCenter for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a bipartisan think-tank, from 2007 to 2008, and then began serving again in 2011.[28] He was a member of the board of directors ofChevron Corporation from May 28, 2008, to December 5, 2008, serving on the Board Nominating and Governance and Public Policy Committees.[29][30][31]According to the first report since Jones re-entered government service in January 2009, Jones earned a salary and bonus of $900,000 from the US Chamber, as well as director fees of $330,000 from theBoeing Company and $290,000 from theChevron Corporation.[32]
After leaving the Obama administration, Jones returned as a Fellow at the US Chamber in 2011.[33]
The board of directors ofGeneral Dynamics has elected Jones to be a director of the corporation, effective August 3, 2011. Also, on January 13, 2012, Jones joined Deloitte Consulting LLP as a senior adviser who will work with Federal and commercial consulting clients within Deloitte's Department of Defense and Intel segments. In early 2013, Jones joined OxiCool Inc's Advisory Board.[34]
Jones established the consulting firms Ironhand Security LLC and Jones Group International LLC. The firms have worked for foreign governments, including Saudi Arabia. After themurder of Jamal Khashoggi by the Saudi regime, Jones downplayed his firms' work with the Saudi government and said that the remaining contract with them was about to expire. However, Jones's firms subsequently expanded its partnership with the Saudi regime. By 2022, his firms had four contracts with the Saudi government and employed 53 Americans in Riyadh, eight of whom were retired generals and admirals.[35]
On May 25, 2007, Congress created an Independent Commission on the Security Forces of Iraq to investigate for 120 days the capabilities of the Iraq armed forces and police.[37] Jones served as chairman of that commission and reported on Congress on September 6, 2007,[38] noting serious deficiencies in the Iraq Interior Ministry and in the Iraq National Police.
Rice appointed Jones as a special envoy for Middle East security on November 28, 2007, to work with bothIsraelis andPalestinians on security issues.[39][40]
Jones serves as a Senior Fellow at theBipartisan Policy Center (BPC), where he works on a variety of national security and energy-related issues.[41] Jones is also a co-chair of BPC's Energy Project.
Jones is an Advisory Board Member ofSpirit of America, a501(c)(3) organization that supports the safety and success of Americans serving abroad and the local people and partners they seek to help.[42]
On December 1, 2008, President-elect Obama announced Jones as his selection forNational Security Advisor.[43][44] The National Security Advisor is appointed by the president without confirmation by the United States Senate.
The selection surprised people because, asMichael Crowley reported, "The two men didn't meet until Obama's foreign policy aide,Mark Lippert, arranged a 2005 sit-down, and, as of this October, Jones had only spoken to Obama twice".[45] Crowley speculated that Jones' record suggests he is "someone who, unencumbered by strong ideological leanings, can evaluate ideas dispassionately whether they come fromleft orright", and, "This is probably why Obama picked him". Jones was also picked because he is well respected and likely to possess the skills to navigate the other prestigious and powerful cabinet members.
Interior of a VH-3D Sea KingMarine One transporting President Obama and Gen Jones
Though he did not knowGates especially well, both men shared long experience in the national security establishment (Gates was in theAir Force and previously headed theCIA). Jones andClinton had a more direct connection from her tenure on theSenate Armed Services Committee. The two were said to have particularly clicked at a 2005conference on security policy inMunich. Jones hosted a small private dinner that included Clinton andSouth Carolina Republican SenatorLindsey Graham, among others; at the end of the convivial evening, according to one person present, Jones followed Clinton out to her car to visit in private.[45]
Jones assumed the post when Obama was sworn into office on January 20, 2009. He announced his resignation as National Security Advisor on October 8, 2010, and was succeeded byThomas E. Donilon.[46]
In March 2013, Jones was quoted comparing the conditions forIranians in a US camp inIraq with the conditions of detention for captives held in theGuantanamo Bay detention camps.[47] While addressing the Iranian American Cultural Society of Michigan, Jones said Guantanamo captives "are treated far better" than the Iranian internees. Jones criticized other aspects of the Obama administration's policy on Iran.Foreign Policy magazine noted that Jones had not volunteered whether he had been paid for this speaking engagement.
In March 2017, Jones reportedly began working as a paid consultant for theMinistry of Defense (Saudi Arabia). In 2019, he began working for the government ofLibya, but stopped after a few months at the request of the State Department.[48]
Former Secretary of DefenseWilliam Cohen, who hired Jones as his military assistant, said that Jones has a placid demeanor and a "methodical approach to problems—he's able to view issues at both the strategic and tactical level".[49]
^"Decorations to foreign citizens" (in Portuguese). Portuguese Chancellor of Honorary Orders. September 10, 2006. Archived fromthe original on September 27, 2007. RetrievedNovember 30, 2008.
^abCrowley, Michael (December 31, 2008)."Man in the Mirror".The New Republic. Archived fromthe original on December 25, 2008. RetrievedJanuary 12, 2008.
^Whitlock, Craig; Jones, Nate (October 18, 2022)."Retired U.S. Generals, Admirals Take Top Jobs with Saudi Crown Prince".Washington Post.Archived from the original on October 18, 2022. RetrievedOctober 18, 2022.Jones applied for authorization to work for the Saudis in November 2016 and received U.S. approval four months later, documents show. [...] In 2019, Jones, Wald and two retired Army lieutenant generals working for the company — Michael Barbero and Douglas Lute — applied for and obtained U.S. approval to advise the Libyan government on the disarmament and reintegration of militia fighters, documents show. [...] Wald told The Post that Jones Group worked in Libya for only a few months. [...] Jones said his company stopped working in Libya at the State Department's request because of the country's political instability.
^"How do you like him now? Toby Keith blasts Peter Jennings and the Dixie Chicks, talks about the pleasures of burping and defends his hit song 'The Angry American'".The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. September 6, 2002.
"General James L. Jones".SHAPE Biographies. Allied Command Operations, NATO. December 2, 2008. Archived fromthe original on February 16, 2003. RetrievedApril 27, 2010.
.png)
.svg)
.svg)
_ribbon.svg)
_ribbon.svg)
This article incorporatespublic domain material from websites or documents of theUnited States Government.[not specific enough to verify]
