Iran Press/America: US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis announced plans to depart in a candid resignation letter to US president Donald Trump that laid bare the growing divide between them, and implicitly criticized Trump for failing to value America's closest allies, who fought alongside the United States in both conflicts.
He released the letter after a face-to-face meeting with Trump in which the two men also aired their differences, a senior White House official said.
"Because you have a right to 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," Mattis said in the letter.
Mattis has been at odds with John Bolton (R) and Mike Pompeo (L)
Meanwhile, Donald Trump announced via Twitter on Thursday that Defense Secretary James Mattis will retire at the end of February.
"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 tweeted. "During Jim's tenure, tremendous progress has been made, especially with respect to the purchase of new fighting equipment. General Mattis was a great help to me in getting allies and other countries to pay their share of military obligations. A new Secretary of Defense will be named shortly. I greatly thank Jim for his service!"
The news comes a day after Trump said that US troops would leave Syria, and hours before he ordered the Pentagon to draw up plans for a troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, moves that Jim Mattis opposed.
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At odds with Trump, Mattis quits as Defense Secretary
Mattis resignation comes a little over two years after Trump nominated him to the position.
He retired from the Marine Corps in 2013 after a 41-year career in which he led troops in Kuwait during the Persian Gulf War, in Afghanistan during the initial U.S. wave in 2001 and in Iraq during the 2003 invasion.
While leading the nation's military, Mattis has sometimes been at odds with more hawkish administration officials like John Bolton, the president's national security adviser and US secretary of state, Mike Pompeo.
Mattis joins a long list of former Trump administration senior figures who have either quit or been removed
On top of that, Trump and Mattis are at odds on policy. They’ve reportedly clashed over NATO strategy, military exercises in South Korea, banning transgender people from serving in the military and the effectiveness of Trump’s move to withdraw the United States from the Iran nuclear deal.
Mattis also reportedly rebuked a demand to stop family from going with troops deployed to South Korea, and a White House attempt to more closely supervise military operations
The departure of Mattis is the latest high profile job which the President needs to fill, including Attorney General, Interior Secretary, and possibly other Cabinet posts as well.
Reactions to Mattis resignation
Top Republicans and Democrats reacted to news of the defense secretary's resignation with alarm Thursday night, expressing concern about the chaos in the administration and the message his departure sends to the world.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell issued a statement expressing grave reservations about why Mattis left.
"I am particularly distressed that he is resigning due to sharp differences with the president on ... key aspects of America’s global leadership," he said.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said she was "shaken" by the announcement.
"What happened in Syria is the straw that broke the camel’s back," Rep. Eliot Engel, D-New York, the incoming chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee told reporters. "It’s a terrible move, it will clearly backfire."
"I quite frankly slept better knowing he was in charge of our military," Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, the chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, said. "We want our enemies to fear us, and we want our allies to trust us. They trusted Secretary Mattis and he stabilized world view and world opinions so I think that’s going to be the loss."
Rep. Ruben Gallego, D-AZ, a Marine veteran and member of the House Armed Services Committee, said it speaks volumes about the dysfunction in the White House that a decorated Marine like Mattis determined "that he can no longer be a functional part of the government,"
In a tweet, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, said "It is with great sadness that I was informed of the resignation of General Mattis. He is one of the great military leaders in American history. He should be proud of the service he has rendered to President @realDonaldTrump and our nation." 101
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