Secretary of Defense James Mattis addresses National Guard leaders at the National Guard Association of the United States 140th General Conference, New Orleans, Louisiana, Aug. 25, 2018. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Sgt. 1st Class Jim Greenhill)
Former Secretary of Defense James Mattis left his post in the administration last year, in opposition to President Donald Trump announcing a troop withdrawal from Syria, and he is blistering his former boss in his new book.
“I did as well as I could for as long as I could,” Mattis writes in his upcoming book, “Call Sign Chaos,” excerpts of which were published in The Wall Street Journal this morning. “When my concrete solutions and strategic advice, especially keeping faith with our allies, no longer resonated, it was time to resign.”
“All Americans need to recognize that our democracy is an experiment and one that can be reversed. We all know that we are better than our current politics,” Mattis writes in another veiled jab toward the President.
Mattis criticized Trump for not being sufficiently interventionist throughout the world, as he believes that an “America First” philosophy is insufficient for the modern world.
“A leader must display strategic acumen that incorporates respect for those nations that have stood with us when trouble loomed. Returning to a strategic stance that includes the interests of as many nations as we can make common cause with, we can better deal with this imperfect world we occupy together,” Mattis writes.
Mattis’ writings make it more obvious why President Trump once referred to him as “sort of a Democrat” before he left the administration, which puzzled many of his right-wing supporters who bought into his tough-as-nails “Mad Dog” persona.
“I think he’s sort of a Democrat, if you want to know the truth. But General Mattis is a good guy. We get along very well. He may leave. I mean, at some point, everybody leaves. Everybody. People leave. That’s Washington,” Trump said of Mattis shortly before his departure.
In addition to opposing President Trump’s plans to remove troops from the Middle East, Mattis also fought to stop the President’s proposed ban on transgender personnel serving in the military. Mattis also reportedly plotted a possible GOP primary challenge against President Trump in 2020 for a time before ultimately deciding against it.
“My purpose in writing this book, is to convey the lessons I learned for those who might benefit, whether in the military or in civilian life,” Mattis writes.
While Mattis may have an exemplary record serving his country, his politics were out of step with Trump’s “America First” mandate, and the excerpts from his upcoming book only make that fact abundantly clear.