I don't even remember where I heard or read this so treat this information as back fence gossip. The story goes that the Marine column was not advancing fast enough (remember the Army reached Baghdad's city limits about 2 days before the Marines). General Franks relieved Colonel Dowdy because Dowdy's rate of progress was too slow and fouling up Franks' over all time table. There are examples of this in history. General Patton relieved some subordinate officers for slow progress during the Sicilian campaign in World War II. During the Civil War, President Lincoln more than once removed general officers because their progress was too slow. It happens. I feel bad for Colonel Dowdy. He was probably being cautious to protect his own men from casualties. It's a paradox of war, that being audacious is often times the best way to minimize casualties.

Gary