Pentagon chief Mattis quits, citing policy differences with Trump

Hate to remind the gleeful liberals that Year 3 of the Trump presidency starts soon. People in these jobs leave by then, you know?

No president has ever had turnover like this. They were quitting and/or getting arrested for treason before he was ever even finished filling all the positions. He's never managed to get all the positions filled.

Because he's weak. Really weak.

No honorable person can serve under Trump.

If Mattis and Kelly and all these people being fired (or still employed) by the mad man in the White House want to prove they are patriots who care about and want to protect our country, now is the time to come forward and speak out against Trump. Things are starting to spiral out of control.

Not good news - one of the last adults in a complete kindergarten administration filled with incompetents, frauds, and felons...

But can you blame him?  He's been approaching American's defense issues in a methodical way over the past two years, to include the fight against ISIS in Syria and blocking Putin's attempts to increase Russia's influence in the Middle East - and he was complete undercut yesterday - not even consulted when the President announced all troops were being pulled.

Imagine that - you're the Secretary of Defense and you weren't even asked about pulling troops out of a war zone.....

That's the kind of incompetent idiot we have in office - at least until Robert Mueller shows us all what a crook and colluder he really is...

"While the U.S. 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," Mattis wrote.

This.

I've said this to Trump fans dozens of times but they are just too busy enjoying Trump talking down to our allies.

Trump sure has a problem with keeping his positions filled.

It's because he's such a weak, pathetic leader. Completely and utterly useless.

It’s simple,

Heh, only in your right-wing deep-state fake-news Coby-defending MSM binary bubble. In the real world, nothing about running a country is simple. In the REAL world...

I've said this to Trump fans dozens of times but they are just too busy enjoying Trump talking down to our allies.

Oh I don't know, he plays nice with allies Putin and Kim.

BlacklabelToday 08:02 am JST

Hate to remind the gleeful liberals that Year 3 of the Trump presidency starts soon. People in these jobs leave by then, you know?

It almost feels like people have been leaving these jobs since about Day 3 of the Trump presidency.

It almost feels like people have been leaving these jobs since about Day 3 of the Trump presidency.

Hey, let's be fair - the first person to leave took three weeks from the start of his presidency. Three whole weeks!

Mattis would never have resigned unless he was ordered to do something illegal, unethical or immoral. Perhaps in the future Mattis will elaborate on what straw broke his back.

And then there's the imminent government shutdown.

Bad is going to worse. But you'd have to be a fool not to have expected this.

Hate to remind the gleeful liberals that Year 3 of the Trump presidency starts soon.

Year three starts - and ends by Jun....

People in these jobs leave by then, you know?

Especially when the they think the President they work for is a "fuc^%$ moron", "idiot", "has the understanding of a fifth/six grader", and "is a danger to the republic"...

Leaving like this, Mattis certainly thinks all of these are true...especially the last one...

Top leaders resigning en masse, if they aren't first arrested for treason. The government about to shut down. The president already indicted for election fraud.

What kind of banana republic is Trump turning the US into?

if they can’t see eye to eye on many of the issues then as a Mattis said, he should find someone that shares the same ideological policy is as he does.

Um, I think Putin is already employed, and not available...

Trump should have just one question in the job interview: Are you a YES man?

If the answer is yes, then hire him or her. If it's NO, then save us the trouble and don't.

Do your research before you glorify Jim Mattis. Among other things, the general is linked to Theranos's massive billion-dollar corporate fraud serving as a board member for many years.

And the record plays over again...

Everyone that has decided they have had enough of this idiot President and move on, have their reputation besmirched by his nut-job insults or far-right conspiracy theories manufactured in Moscow...

Is it any wonder no one wants anywhere near the White House...you'll work for a "fuc^%$ moron", then get called a "dog", "liar", "low intelligence" or "rat" when you leave.

McMaster was first, then Kelly, now Mattis - the Generals prefer working for someone who is not a Russian puppet and a "danger to the republic"... 

The one General who didn't mind (Flynn) is getting "LOCKED UP"....

Another rat! A sinking ship?

Speculation that Mattis might not last long in his post grew in October when Republican Trump said in a CBS interview that the general was "sort of a Democrat" and might be leaving.

Sort of a democrat??.... you mean he might have had some sort of moral compass that is clearly lacking in the Trump circus?

Sounds like another job opening for Jared.

I wonder how many hats that head can wear all at once.

Mattis signed up to serve the United States of America, he resigned when he realized he was serving the United States of Russia.

Narcissus J. Trumpnocchio should be the next to “resign”.

BlacklabelToday 02:22 pm JST

Wow my most highly downvoted post ever! Which proves that liberals are extremely mad about the FACT of Trump year 3 starting.

More likely that everyone who read it thought it was jaw-droppingly stupid and inane but couldn't be bothered to dignify it with any other response. Besides:

"There is a lot of concern like I have never seen in my life," Adam Kinzinger, a Republican House member from Illinois, said on CNN, reflecting the sentiments of his colleagues at the events of the last few days.

A senior conservative House GOP member, who supports Trump, told CNN's Jim Acosta: "The wheels may be coming off."

Republican Sen. Marco Rubio warned in a tweet that the Mattis resignation letter made it "abundantly clear that we are headed towards a series of grave policy errors which will endanger our nation, damage our alliances & empower our adversaries."

Not a liberal voice among them.

It appears some posters are implying that Trump dismissed Mattis. That is not the case. Mattis quit. But that's in the rearview mirror now. The question is who Trump can persuade to take over Defense - a position which, unlike his Chief of Staff, requires senate approval, so Trump can't just play musical chairs.

What Mattis letter really says:

I disagree with trump on pretty EVERYTHING to do with defense.

Why are you handing Syria to Putin??

We shouldn't leave Afghanistan hanging like this after all the THINGS we asked of them

Do you know ANYTHING about modern US history??

Again why are you doing all this for Putin??

I am OUTTA here!!

No, it is and very much so. Liberals always want to do this, they have a short term memory every time, dung those years Under his administration they advocated to leave Iraq and now all of a sudden the same idiot people want to stay in Syria, why? It’s just pure political grandstanding once again!

What is your opinion of Trump’s decision to pull out?

You just seem to rant against liberals rather than dealing with the question.

I agree that the troops should be pulled out. What do you think?

Trump, eager to change the headlines, on an impulse, chose the most reckless, relationship damaging way of going about it. Amateur hour in the White House.

That's my current thought. He's freaking out, figured he would do something that would both establish his legacy, and get people talking about something else, and did what he always does - Tweeted out something that came back to bite him in the form of Mattis quitting in a very visible manner, taking Trump to task while at it.

I'd say someone should take away Trump's Twitter for his own good, but it doesn't matter anymore. When we look back in time after all the details become clear, it will be clear that at this point in time he's already dug his hole well beyond the point of escape. Just waiting for the walls to collapse now. So it doesn't matter whether he Tweets or not.

To add to my comment, I've long said that the US should leave the Middle East. I don't think this is the correct way to go about it, and I don't think the intent was even to do the right thing by getting out of the Middle East, but rather just a diversion from Trump's quickly crumbling presidency. So while the intention - to get the US out of Syria - is one with which I agree, the implementation - Trump's method of achieving the goal - is already starting out as a complete failure, for reasons others have already explained above better than I could.

How so? How, specifically, are they ruined? What can the US not do now that it could before Trump?

Maybe ruined isn't the right word, but damaged sure is. You people chose him, and continue to support him, and he has, as the chosen representative of your people, disrespected many of your allies. The Canadians and Mexicans will not forget this debacle, and the disrespect their people have had to listen to from this blowhard. The damage Trump has caused in these countries alone will persist for a generation or two. Both countries are full of pride, and had thought America was like a brother, but have found out is actually just a bully who lives next door.

So Trump says he’s smarter than the generals and knows how to defeat ISIS in 30 days. Then he says the muzzle needs to be taken off of the military and the generals need to run things in Syria. Then he tweets that we are pulling out without consulting the generals.

My guess is he feels cornered and is running to his base. We saw his 180 with the wall and now he’s doing a 180 on Syria. The guy is just too erratic and indecisive. Not good qualities for the leader of America.

Another rat deserting the ship of state Trump's sinking even further and faster.

But sinking the US was one of Trump's stated intentions.

His supporters in the US and 'abroad' are getting their way.

It's a logical impossibility to have a policy difference with Trump, because Trump has no policies. It just depends how he feels that morning, or in this case, what his boss in the Kremlin told him to do re Syria. Mattis' policy difference was with Putin.

we cannot protect our interests or serve that role effectively without maintaining strong alliances and showing respect to those allies."

Whether you think we should withdraw from Syria or Afghanistan or not, there are ways of going about it. Trump, eager to change the headlines, on an impulse, chose the most reckless, relationship damaging way of going about it. Amateur hour in the White House.

Were our allies, strategic partners consulted in the decision? Forewarned before the announcement? Left hanging... Why should they trust us or join us next time we call on them?

Just needless, gratuitous damage to our relationship. Wasn’t necessary to do it this way. Trump is either a tool of a foreign power or the most incompetent blundering bozo we’ve ever had in so high an office.

At this point you really have to have your head in the sand not to see it.

Trump just keeps winning. I would say his administration is falling apart, but it has never been together. All these people fleeing couldn't be because of this plethora of investigations, could it?

Nobody can work with a moron...

Time to build a wall, strip the moron of citizenship, deport the moron behind the wall so the moron can test himself his moronic wall...

Even though Donny is fiercely opposed to outsourcing, he seems to have outsourced the US Foreign Policy to Russia. How long before he outsources the Administration too.

I dont have a problem with learning Russian, but can we keep our passports?

Now even his own handpicked General disagrees with him

Trump admires military men so much.............. yet in the end, they usually end up not synching with him

Maybe the qualities he admires of the military men, they don't see that in him in return

Makes ya wonder why he admires such qualities in the first place, when he has no strive to attain it

As for Mattis, this is about the US' honor and about Trump disrespecting the country's allies by just leaving them high and dry without consulting with them at all - this after years of helping at the US' request. How can the US ask for their help again next time

I wonder how many hats that head can wear all at once.

I think Ivanka is better suited, she can always go perfrom for the troops now she doesnt have a clothing line to run anymore.

Why are you handing Syria to Putin??

Why not? As not as though the US has made Syria a wonderful place. Let Russia have a go at it. Better yet, let Syria have a go at it themselves.

While the U.S. remains the indispensable nation in the free world

More American myth-making. It's a useful trope to keep the sheep in line, but not a statement that holds up well under close examination. Not in recent history anyway.

Mattis' letter of resignation is a message to Americans that Trump's methods of running the country are destructive and abetting Russia and China to grasp more control over the world. I believe that had he felt Americans would be safer removing military forces from Syria, the Defense Secretary would have agreed with Trump's decision.

Seems like some of the people here think Trump's military expertise is far more superior to a 4 star general...

@Blacklabel, why would you build 2 walls? Because you think they will climb over the first one?

@fizzbit

Wouldn't abandoning the "lost cause" kurds result in a revolt by unleashing their mass of IS prisoners? Doubt they care for the U.S. let alone the rest of the western world too much. Trump won't be able to take much responsibility for defeating IS after something like that. Pretty much how most extremist islam terrorist organizations form right? U.S. engineered after abandonment in chaos.

@Blacklabel, why would you build 2 walls? Because you think they will climb over the first one?

One is a prison wall around Trump.

@commanteer

The president of France has still managed to maintain good international affairs despite having societal issues domestically. Trump has ruined many foreign relationships while also creating tension and problems domestically. Terrible way to get your point across...Pretty good way at proving mine though.

We have to try not being there now, so let's hope there isn't some sort of catastrophic fallout from it.

Trump's split with Mattis followed a pattern of public breakdowns with advisers who served as guardrails in the administration.

Trump initially hailed Tillerson, the head of ExxonMobil executive, as out of 'central casting' when as was tapped as secretary of state, before being unceremoniously discarded by the president earlier this year. Earlier this month, Tillerson described Trump as "pretty undisciplined, doesn't like to read doesn't like to read, doesn't read briefing reports, doesn't like to get into the details of a lot of things, but rather just kind of says, 'This is what I believe.'"

Mattis obviously put up with Trump as long as he possibly could. The Trump administration should be put under administration! How ridiculous does it have to get before the vast majority of people in the US realize how ridiculous it actually is?

The anti-Trumpers are mad because we are pulling our troops out of a foreign war. Go figure.

Said a pro-Trumper who for years defended The war in Iraq as a great idea “Saddam’s winsome sons” until Trump told him it was the biggest foreign policy blunder ever? Checking. Yep. Go figure. Figured.

The Anti-particularly-stupid self-serving Presidents, (both pro and against staying in Syria/Afghanistan), are mad that the numbnuts in chief doesn’t understand, as Mattis put it that “we cannot protect our interests or serve that role (of indispensable nation) effectively without maintaining strong alliances and showing respect to those allies”.

Serrano:. The anti-Trumpers are mad because we are pulling our troops out of a foreign war. Go figure.

This will most likely be the strawman Trump fans go after. It allows them to set asside Trump's erratic and poorly planned decision-making process and turns it into a simple "you said you were against the war" argument.

The other wrinkle will be to present it as "liberals vs Trump" and ignore all criticism from Republicans. That's just how it works with them.

SerranoToday  08:27 pm JST

"No honorable person can serve under Trump."

Mattis will have served more than 2 years under Trump. He's not honorable?

Clearly he is because he's figured out he can't do it any more.

Ahhh, the establishment, yes.

yes weve already established Trump is a moron, thanks

in a further threat to the Mueller investigation we are also withdrawing from Afghan too. Wonderful news.

Not sure why this would be a threat to the Mueller investigation. This doesn't seem to be a very coherent argument.

@commanteer

Not sure how you can think Trump has strong common sense in foreign affairs when he's destroyed relationships with previous allies and estranged America from other allies.

Of course he has his own interests, he said that in his resignation letter. His interests were different from the presidents which is why he chose to leave the position.

I'm not saying we shouldn't be happy to be out of a war, that should be a great thing. But its possible leaving Syria the way it is, unresolved mostly, will have far more serious consequences on not just the middle east, but American security as well.

Basically, I'm no expert. But when the majority of people who are experienced disagree with the real estate and reality tv king, you kind of have to wonder why. There's not much we can do about it now though I guess...

Obama fired Mattis because Mattis wanted stronger military action against Iran. Obama wanted a de-nuclearized Iran. Trump does not want anything with Obama's name on it to survive, whether it be a peace treaty or a medical care program. Trump's overt racism may likely play a part in his decision to abandon the nuclear treaty with iran.

Mattis resigned from Trump because Mattis is against abandoning our allies around the world. Thousands of our allies in Syria will be killed by Turks, Iranians, Assad, and the Russians. The Taliban will become ascendant in Afghanistan without the US and NATO to prop them up. When the Taliban regain control, the flood of refugees out of Afghanistan will resume. Mattis has so far been able to temper some of Trump's worst impulses regarding South Korea, Japan, and NATO. What happens post-Mattis may be quite ugly.

"Everybody wants to work in the White House" ... until they have the misfortune of dealing with me. "Let me outta here!"

"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."

There it is right there…. it doesn't matter if you are a conservative, republican, democrat, liberal..... If you are not in the least bit suspicious or at least curious why our Commander in Chief is behaving the way he is, then YOU are a BIG part of the problem.

Kinda hafta agree with Wolfpack on this one; Mattis comes from the old school way of thought; overextended waste abroad = continued allied support. Problem with this paradigm is that its too easy for the continued wasteful projects and employees to remain; they are almost impossible to rid of, all under the umbrella of national defense that old school generals like Mattis believe in. I think Trump should look at Japan and the waste that goes on here, and around the pacific first. Pulling out of Syria? would reconsider it, but its what Trump does, promise on his campaign promises. Gotta respect him on that, even if its wrong.

Mattis has supposedly talked about running against the president which would definitely be a motivating factor. Lots of folks here anxious to stay in Afghanistan and Syria but that isn't a winning platform among real voters.

When mad dog quits you know it’s serious!:-)

well maybe he he will give this position to Eric !

I appreciate Mattis opinion on Russia and China, but the US needs to get their own act together when it comes to priority on weapons development and money expenditure. China now supposedly has a rail run now operable. where did they get that technology from? At least Trump is making efforts to stop this stealing and copying our technology. You cant have it both ways; massive Chinese immigration into the US then be surprised when top secret technology suddenly appears on their ships, beating you to the finish line.

"'Senator Bob Menendez, ... called it "a significant loss..." #FLOL, this is rich coming from the same pedophile and a corrupt politician, who two years ago warned that our democracy would end if DOD is run by a military General, instead of a civilian.

I will say this though, Gen. Mattis leaving is a great thing, and it means the gloves are off. President Trump is now freed to do what he should have been doing. But to the President credit, for two years, he refrained himself and allowed these "experts" to make their case. He heard their cases and he was not convinced. And now they're all packing. Thank U, next.

I'm always happy when one of my posts is downvoted into oblivion here.

It means I'm posting the truth.

Whatever support I had for Donald Trump which was marginal at best. Just evaporated.

We do not share the analyses that the territorial caliphate has been annihilated," Parly said on RTL radio. "It's an extremely grave decision and we think ... the job must be finished."

Grave indeed. You would think that Donald Trump would have taken a page out of history here.

When the US military withdrew from Iraq in 2011, it left a power vacuum for the terror (ISIS) group to exploit and expand exponentially. I do not blame Secretary Mattis for leaving the administration. No one has ever won a war in Afghanistan ever. Either take it all the way or never go in the first place.

 "No war is over until the enemy says it's over. We may think it over, we may declare it over, but in fact, the enemy gets a vote.- Mattis.

I would bet a large sum something similiar was said between the two men in the oval office.

Crucial mistake Mr. Trump. You may feel U.S. Troops did or did not belong in region and that is fine. But I am of the belife since we were thier. We needed to totallly annihilate ISIS into oblivion. My Old man used to say.

If you are going to do a thing. Finish it till the end and make sure the thing is done.

"Pulling out of Syria? would reconsider it, but its what Trump does, promise ( deliver, right? ) on his campaign promises. Gotta respect him on that, even if its wrong."

In the case of the Syria withdrawal he isn't wrong. What campaign promises has he made that are wrong?

@Serrano,

Time will tell if it was a wrong decision. Who will rebuild Syria? Is there a reconstruct team ready?

I agree with almost all of Trumps decisions, especially when it comes to Japan and China, even Canada and Mexico. I thought the day would never come where we had ambassadors to Japan who actually cared about US interest here. I like the chaos that Trump brings, but I dont think it will be sustainable. Maybe he will get a 2nd term but people will get burned out on it. So far so good, though. Entrenched bureaucracy and and career government workers, who are disconnected from the people that pay them and the reality they are supposed to be aware of, they must hate him so bad..ha ha

..lets just say I like what I see...)

The fact that Trump is by instinct an isolationist means that most senior military folks are kind of at odds with him.

And here’s the fake news part

Mattis' letter indicated that he disagreed with Trump's isolationist policies

It’s not isolationist to stop dividing/attacking/occupying the middle easterners. Only a CentCom Israeli first neoconservative could call a move towards peace isolationist.

The above is from the other new bit on this.

No doubt Trump’s constant feuds with current and former military chiefs were some of the straws.

You don’t get away with dissing a true hero and honorable, sensible commander like William McRaven without losing respect from the military.

Mattis and McRaven also served as chief of their respective branches during the same time period. The Marines and Navy don’t have too much love for the other, but are in the end inseparably joined, and operate closely.

wake up call for others

I'm always happy when one of my posts is downvoted into oblivion here.

It means I'm posting the truth.

In this board, take it as a badge of honor.

Mostly visit here for civil discourse and end up skimming through posts for amusement, see who's out of sorts, outraged with the latest "news" replete with ad-hominem attacks and name-calling.

Where was the outrage when Obama relieved Mattis as commander of CENTCOM without so much as a phone call, a factoid typical of Obama's disdain for the military, its missions, and its heroes.

Defense secretaries come and go. President Obama had four of them in eight years, who had some unkind things to say about his leadership or lack of it. There was no talk of chaos or of the only adult in the room leaving.

What's even funnier is CodePink, the media and the left would have been ecstatic had the previous administration announced a withdrawal from Syria and Afghanistan, and ya bet a second novel peace prize would have been concocted, if only to cover up for the first undeserved one.

I’m unclear of the relevance of Obama to the current situation. Obama let Mattis go, Mattis quit on Trump, with a scathing message when he did it. Seems entirely irrelevant to Obama... unless... oh I see what you did there. You were pulling a whattaboutism to try to detract from Trump’s failure! Tsk tsk. Shame on you.

One utterly failed against the "JV" team, the other won and annihilated ISIS to 2 percent of what it was, down to small enclaves in Syria. Have the Arabs and the U.N. mop up. Let the boys go home.

As for Mattis, one disrespected the general out of sheer disdain for the military, the other allowed the general to resign out of principle. It was time to leave.

Now, who was it who failed?

Unwilling to stab allies in the back, Mattis resigned, while telling Trump he needs to find someone else, someone who thinks that what he is doing makes sense.

Might I suggest Erik Prince as his replacement. Perfectly qualified.

There it is right there…. it doesn't matter if you are a conservative, republican, democrat, liberal..... If you are not in the least bit suspicious or at least curious why our Commander in Chief is behaving the way he is, then YOU are a BIG part of the problem.

I feel you got the BIG problem backwards. By getting out of Syria and Afghanistan, more resources can be put towards China. Maybe something like a TRADE WAR which Trump IS doing.

America must reduce its global commitments and look after its own interests. Secretary Mattis is tied to the idea that America is a global superpower. But the $22 trillion debt is not the mark of superpower - its the mark of a nation in rapid and swift decline. Time to stop overextending itself and stop acting as if it's still 1945.

Trump is turning out to be the best President of my life time. Not getting involved in conflicts the world over? What a novel idea. Now we can focus on fixing infrastructure and countering China. Thanks Trump!

Wow my most highly downvoted post ever! Which proves that liberals are extremely mad about the FACT of Trump year 3 starting.

in a further threat to the Mueller investigation we are also withdrawing from Afghan too. Wonderful news.

Saved so much money this week on stopping armed conflict we can now afford 2 walls

Mattis' letter of resignation is a message to Americans that Trump's methods of running the country are destructive and abetting Russia and China to grasp more control over the world. 

If you believe in what you say, then leaving Syria and abandoning the lost cause of the Kurds would pull NATO member Turkey away from more solidarity WITH Russia and China. Mattis is spreading fear porn cuz this Syria move is exactly what Israel doesn’t want. Israel and Saudi Arabia are two of the worst countries on the planet with SA and friends actively trying to violently take over a neighboring country.

Im afraid you’ve got it backwards. By leaving Syria, Trump can divert more attention to yours and Mattis’s Russia/China “nightmare” scenario.

Wow my most highly downvoted post ever! Which proves that liberals are extremely mad about the FACT of Trump year 3 starting.

Ironic that Obama won his first election with promises to pull the US out of those conflicts, and instead expanded them. Trump is doing what Obama promised to do. And they hate him for it. Go figure.

Seems like some of the people here think Trump's military expertise is far more superior to a 4 star general...

No. But some people may think Trump's grasp of common sense in foreign affairs is better than a military man's. Mattis, like all generals and politicians, has his own interests, and perhaps truly believes it's a good idea to get the US involved in all these conflicts as a sort of corrupt and/or incompetent global policeman. But the people didn't elect him, he's simply a soldier. They elected Trump, and most decent people are happy to be out of a war - especially a distant war where the lines between the good guys and bad guys are very blurred.

Not sure how you can think Trump has strong common sense in foreign affairs when he's destroyed relationships with previous allies and estranged America from other allies

That's debatable. Unless you think a French president who has to hide from his own people really represents his country, for example.

But its possible leaving Syria the way it is, unresolved mostly, will have far more serious consequences on not just the middle east, but American security as well.

I would rather see a clumsy exit than a skillful and diplomatic 10 more years of war. The consequences of being there we already know are bad. Let's try not being there.

Reality is what you make it; case in point, the comments section here. No matter what Trump does, the N.P.C.s claim "Orange Man Bad".

How about this: this is what Trump ran on; America First. It's the same thing George Washington warned us against, namely foreign entanglement.

The sad reality though, is that if we leave then someone else will just fill the void. Now it's an all-out fight between Russia, Iran, and Israel to take Syria.

Well, let them fight, I say.

Do your research before you glorify Jim Mattis. Among other things, the general is linked to Theranos's massive billion-dollar corporate fraud serving as a board member for many years. He's a good general and a great military leader, but if it's time to move on, it's time to move on. 

He serves in a high profile job at the pleasure of the duly-elected President of the United States and it would be a stain on his own reputation if he politicizes quitting the role which he had to honor to do for two years.

He is right when he says, "the armed forces of the United States should not be the policeman of the world." And "...while the U.S. 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."

President Trump wants America's allies to start ponying up with their own resources and sacrifice their own lives for their own defense. Why should American soldiers be the ones doing the dirty job in Syria? Where are the Arabs, the E.U. and the U.N. and isn't it about time they dealt with this quagmire in their own backyard? If the general can't agree with that, too bad. Just leave quietly, sir.

Deadforgood

Wouldn't abandoning the "lost cause" kurds result in a revolt by unleashing their mass of IS prisoners

Not a bad piece of speculation. Anything’s possible, but then couldn't IS turn around and attack the Kurds in their weakened position? Too risky I think.

Trump won't be able to take much responsibility for defeating IS

He might, but most know it was a combination of Iraqis, US, Russia, Kurds and Syria with financial help from other countries as well.

U.S. engineered after abandonment in chaos.

I wouldn’t classify the Kurds as in chaos, but the CentCom Mattis gang engineering the Syrian civil war, he heck yeah.

"No honorable person can serve under Trump."

Mattis will have served more than 2 years under Trump. He's not honorable?

"Trump is turning out to be the best President of my life time. Not getting involved in conflicts the world over? What a novel idea."

The anti-Trumpers are mad because we are pulling our troops out of a foreign war. Go figure.

Trump has ruined many foreign relationships

How so? How, specifically, are they ruined? What can the US not do now that it could before Trump?

So far as Trump's intent. Who cares? All politicians have their ulterior motives. What matters is what they do,

Everyone that has decided they have had enough of this idiot President and move on, have their reputation besmirched by his nut-job insults or far-right conspiracy theories manufactured in Moscow...

Ahhh, the establishment, yes.

Trump in 2018 who has just seen his Defense Secretary quit over incompatible decision making re Syria, Russia, China and the US's long term friends and allies incl NATO etc, etc.

Yeah, so what? He is the president and he has the right to make that decision has any president does and if he has a cabinet that doesn’t agree with them, they are allowed to leave and he can choose a cab now that agrees and align themselves more with his policies and his worldview.

The fact that Mattis bluntly stated such in public (veiled politeness) speaks much about how broken Trumps little red wagon truly is.

Well, that is his opinion and their address I disagree with that opinion, there are millions of Americans to think what is the goal of the objective of being there and there are many people that want their loved ones to come home and something that he promised during the campaign, so he is trying to for fill another promise, can’t fault him for trying to do that.

It almost feels like people have been leaving these jobs since about Day 3 of the Trump presidency.

And that’s OK, he serves at the pleasure of the president and if they can’t see eye to eye on many of the issues then as a Mattis said, he should find someone that shares the same ideological policy is as he does. Now I know the liberals are trying their best to paint this as the doom and gloom and it’s not, there is not national crisis, he just needs to find someone else. Pelosi and Chuck are speaking right now, dear lord, it’s DEFCON 9. Lock up your children! You will find someone else to replace him, now I like the general and I have deep respect for him, but he serves at the pleasure of the president and if it’s the presidents decision, then it can’t be helped. He needs to step aside.

It’s simple, Generals fight wars. Trump is pulling us out of those. Soon no Americans will be in armed conflict anywhere in the world.

Mattie is an honorable man. He plays offense, so let someone else be secretary of defense.

Hate to remind the gleeful liberals that Year 3 of the Trump presidency starts soon. People in these jobs leave by then, you know?