Once and Future Commander: Gen. David Petraeus Returns to Battle in Afghanistan

June 23, 2010— -- In calling on Gen. David Petraeus to take command of the Afghan war, President Obama is turning to the architect of the Iraq "surge" that turned the tide there and allowed the U.S. to begin withdrawing troops.

In accepting the job, Petraeus will likely temporarily step down from his position as commander of the U.S. Central Command in Tampa, Fla., which will essentially be a step down. He will change out of his dress uniform, heavy with metals and bars marking every six months he has seen in combat, and again don his fatigues for a return to the battlefield.

Obama said Petraeus was "setting an extraordinary example of service and patriotism" and that his new position would come "at great personal sacrifice to himself and to his family."

"As CentCom commander, there is no doubt he can take charge of Afghanistan for an interim basis," retired Maj. Gen. William Nash, told ABCNews.com. "But for him to give up CentCom and take over in Afghanistan is truly unusual."

Petraeus, 57, was tapped today after Obama accepted the resignation of Gen. Stanley McChrystal. McChrystal's tenured came to an abrupt end after and his staff were quoted in Rolling Stone magazine ridiculing the White House strategists.

In the wake of McChrystal's flamboyant implosion, Petraeus' steady and understated style was appealing.

In 2008, Petraeus, a 4-star general, left Iraq, where he served two years as commander of U.S. and coalition forces, the longest tour for a U.S. general in that position.

In the past year, at CentCom, he has maintained a lower profile, letting the administration and McChrystal field questions about policy in Afghanistan, particularly when it has come to increasing the numbers of U.S. troops there.

"His office has been in Florida but his job is all over the Middle East," Nash said. "He travels all over the region, going to Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan. It's not like he's sitting around in Florida. He knows the region well"

Petraeus, who graduated at the top of his class from West Point in 1974, has a reputation for a scholarly mien. He earned a PhD in international relations from Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School and in 2005, took over at the Army's officer school and doctrinal center at Fort Leavenworth, Kan.