Mattis to step down as defense secretary
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
President Trump announced Thursday that Defense Secretary Jim Mattis would leave his position in February, marking the departure of an influential figure who has steered the Trump administration toward foreign policy continuity and restraint.
Mattis’s departure could add new uncertainty to which course the administration might take on its global challenges, including Iran and North Korea, amid questions about the pending withdrawal of U.S. troops from Syria and a possible drawdown in Afghanistan.
“General Jim Mattis will be retiring, with distinction, at the end of February, after having served my Administration as Secretary of Defense for the past two years,” Trump said in a tweet.
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Trump is losing it folks. Let's hope it is a peaceful descent.
Not sure at this point if Mattis resigned or is being fired, but it appears to be over Trump's announcement about Syria.
at least we have until February...
There's talk he aims to bring several thousand troops home from Afghanistan early next year also. It's about time to start correcting the damage caused by war mongering neocons like Bush the younger and his corrupt crew.
Wait, so it wasn't time when Obama did it, but now "it's about time...". More evidence that the act matters less than the skin color of the one enacting it.
On whose part?
Not at all. I do draw a conclusion however, between something a black President tried to do and was berated for, with Republicans claiming his withdrawal from the region allowed ISIS to form (which was a total lie, ISIS already existed before Obama was President), and that a draw down in Afghanistan would allow the Taliban and ISIS to dominate the region. Now, when a Republican proposes the same draw down and a complete tail between the legs withdrawal from Syria, Republicans are all for it proclaiming it as America first policy and removing our assets from areas we don't need to continue propping up with our tax dollars.
I'm sure Mattis resigned over the decision to pull out of Syria. It is the first time that the President has made a monumental blunder. The first time I've disagreed with him. Those 2,000 men in Syria have been essential to the US in destroying ISIS and ISIS may be 80-90% gone, but it can grow right back. Our allies the Kurds will now be left vulnerable and all the progress made over 2 years in Syria will be wasted. I think every military official was against this move.
One only needs to read the Mattis letter to know he resigned over this tragic decision.
"I no mor a bout Eye Cist then the Jenrals!"
Sure you do cupcake, sure you do...
This is not a surprise. Mattis was against withdrawing US troops from Syria. So now Trump has none of ''his generals'' as he liked to claim left.
Meanwhile Lindsey Graham is losing it........in a good way.
Trump will hint that Miss Lindsey might be the next AG or Defense Secretary and he will return to his previously held position of supporting the Trumpster Fire administration, while also trying to imitate the appearance of a pragmatic Republican.
General Mattis was also against American pulling out of the Iran deal without cause.
Mattis felt that ditching the deal without cause showed the world that Trump had no honor by proving that Americas word didn't mean shit with him as President.
No wander the General, (a man of honor with a lifetime of service to his country), felt that his world view and that of our current buffoon and chief were not in sync.
I'm just surprised the General lasted as long as he did, trying to protect the country from the onslaught of Trumps policies, but with the Republican party forgoing their over site duties and rolling over & acting like Trumps lap dogs, Mattis sense of honorable duty was finally overwhelmed by Trumps madness, like King Leonidas at the Battle of Thermopylae.
Mattis defends Iran deal as Trump considers withdrawal
By Ellen Mitchell - 04/26/18
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Mattis Breaks With Trump, Says Iran Nuclear Deal Includes ‘Robust’ Verification
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Remember when Jim Mattis was supposed to rein in Donald Trump?
He couldn’t stop the president from abandoning the Iran deal.
Let me guess, Mattis is a radical leftist out to unfairly impugn the President?
I think it's more like Trump isn't as far right as many people think.
Would you rather have Mattis deciding our military moves, or Trump?
The president is mentally and psychologically unbalanced and now has more influence over our military. It's kind of scary.
Well, there goes one of the last breaks on US suffering Full Blown Trumpism...
and now Steve Miller ( sans the painted on hair ) is on Wolf Blitzer
making a slobbering boot licking, over the top bid to be the next Chief of Staff by flattering Trump for being the best at everything.
( the most sophisticated President ever ? )
Was that a nauseating display, or what?! I felt like I was watching an obnoxious talking penis.
Well, he cheats on his wives better than anyone, and paying off porn stars....and lying, no one, I mean NO ONE, lies more than trump does...
So he is good at some things..
Mattis, Kelly , McMaster and Tillerson were the so-called "adults in the room" in the Trump administration. Now they are all gone. We have Bolton and Kushner advising Trump. Not a pretty picture.
He'll get new generals more to his liking, John. Ones that don't favor our current interventionist policy. That's how things work in Foggy Bottom. You worry too much.
That is what everyone is afraid of. Trump is not a well man.
Well Flynn is out of the running and he's one to Trump liking...LOL
So it's pretty fucking clear that Trump didn't take or seek counsel from Mattis on the Syria withdrawal. Can we trust a General that will be a sycophant to Trump?
Are they almost ready to graduate from their ESL classes?
Trump never seeks counsel from anyone. Every president going back to at LEAST Reagan, sought the counsel of advisors because they know more than the POTUS does. Trump? No, never because his ego is so fucking big, he literally thinks he knows more about everything than everyone else. Trump is mentally ill.
Hey, I have known guys with big egos, and that's fine, I have an ego myself...but when your ego is so big that you actually believe that you are the smartest person on the planet, about every subject, bar none, you're mentally ill.
David Petraeus is available.
He is a retired 4 star General, ex-CIA Director and wife cheater. What's Trump not to like.
Trump already seriously considered Petraeus for Secretary of State in spite of Petraeus' conviction in 2015 to a reduced charge of unauthorized removal and retention of classified information.
Two things we already knew about Trump.
1) He has opposed most or all of the wars we have fought since 2000. I can't speak to his feelings on conflicts before that.
2) I never watched The Apprentice, but the main reputation he has from that show is he likes to fire people.
So trump is a pacifist? Hope that one gets out, no way the right will vote for his orange ass if they know that.
They did know it and they voted for him anyway.
Security of Defense General Mattis resignation letter.
December 20, 2018 Dear Mr. President:
I have been privileged to serve as our country's 26th Secretary of Defense which has allowed me to serve alongside our men and women of the Department in defense of our cintens and our ideals.
I am proud of the progress that has been made over the past two years on some of the key goals articulated in our National Defense Strategy: putting the Department on a more sound budgetary footing, improving readiness and lethality in our forces, and reforming the Department's business practices for greater performance. Our troops continue to provide the capabilities needed to prevail in conflict and sustain strong US. global influence.
One core belief I have always held is that our strength as a nation is inextricably linked to the strength of our unique and comprehensive system of alliances and partnerships. While the US remains the indispensable nation in the free world, we cannot protect our interests or serve that role effectively without maintaining strong alliances and showing respect to those allies. Like you, I have said from the beginning that the armed forces of the United States should not he the policeman of the world. Instead, we must use all tools of American power to provide for the common defense, including providing effective leadership to our alliances. NATO's 29 democracies demonstrated that strength in their commitment to fighting alongside us following the 9/11 attack on America. The Defeat-ISIS coalition of 74 nations is further proof.
Similarly, I believe we must he resolute and unambiguous in our approach to those countries whose strategic interests are increasingly in tension with ours. It is clear that China and Russia, for example, want to shape a world consistent with their authoritarian model gaining veto authority over other nations' economic, diplomatic, and security decisions to promote their own interests at the expense of their neighbors, America and our allies. That is why we must use all the tools of American power to provide for the common defense.
My views on treating allies with respect and also being clear-eyed about both malign actors and strategic competitors are strongly held and informed by over four decades of immersion in these issues. We must do everything possible to advance an international order that is most conducive to our security, prosperity and values, and we are strengthened in this effort by the solidarity of our alliances.
Because you have the right to have a Secretary of Defense whose views are better aligned with yours on these and other subjects, I believe it is right for me to step down from my position. The end date of my tenure is February 28, 2019, a date that should allow sufficient time for a successor to he nominated and confirmed as well as to make sure the Department's interests are properly articulated and protected at upcoming events to include Congressional posture hearings and the NATO Defense Ministerial meeting in February. Further, that a full transition to a new Secretary of Defense occurs well in advance of the transition of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in September in order to ensure stability within the Department.
I pledge my full effort to a smooth transition that ensures the needs and interests of the 2,15 million Service Members and the 732,079 DoD civilians receive undistracted attention of the Department of all times so that they can fulfill their critical, round-the-clock mission to protect the American people.
I very much appreciate this opportunity to serve the nation and our men and women in uniform.
Hang on to your bloomers ladies and gents. The House just approved $5.7 billion for Trump's fucking wall.
Senate won't pass it. I think. I feel like I've aged 10 years in 2 days.
One of the guests on the news asked if anyone else felt like they aged 20 years in the last 2 years...
I saw that and it was exactly what I was thinking. Guess I forgot the years, but it def feels more like 20 than 10. I don't think I've ever felt such stress, and its in the air like a big weight on all of us. I'm getting pretty nervous, some very respected people are sounding alarms, saying we are entering very dangerous times. I was driving home today from an overnight visit without seeing news, and even listening to the radio on the way back the news was even more dire later. And the markets........
Good! And when 2019 comes, the Dems can do the same as the Republicans did with the PPACA, chip away at defunding it until it collapses.
I like it.. LOL
[deleted] " The republicans did I to us so we get to do it to them.. "
[deleted]
The republicans are breaking barriers and setting new standards. Why should others not be able to use these same new standards set?
Your state has one of the worst stats for health coverage and care, and I know retirees with good plans that don't translate in Texas where they moved, and its costing them THOUSANDS to cover. There is a price to pay when people believe liars and the lies they tell, and you've been fed some whoppers. The ACA began bringing down costs even as republicans tried to fuck it up. Now Americans are being punished for their ignorance and we are going backward.
If you don't even know about the state of healthcare in your own state, wtf are you commenting?
Keep grasping at the $2500. It allows you to focus on a small detail instead of the big picture. This is a really complicated subject that seems beyond the grasp of too many Americans, believing the bullshit from clueless politicians.
Trump wants someone to tell him no matter what he does, he is right. That's what it boils down to. Trump Doesn't want to be challenged on his decisions, he doesn't want to explain his decisions....He literally wants free reign to do whatever the fuck he wants....
"Dictator, party of one, your table is ready.."
We should all be alarmed by this resignation but I see some are quite happy with the state of the country.
Trumpsters are all in on this craziness. Too late to turn back now.