Mad Dog Mattis's rift with Trump

FOR THOSE UNFORTUNATES WHO DO NOT READ THE TIMES, HERE IS AN ARTICLE BY ME RUNNING ONLINE TODAY, WITH A BIT EXTRA THAT WAS SUBBED OUT. Donald Trump used to routinely refer to Jim Mattis, his Defence Secretary, by his nickname “Mad Dog” in honour of the warrior reputation the former Marine Corps general acquired during a long military career. These days, after a series of policy disagreements, the president mockingly calls him “Moderate Dog”. “The bloom is definitely off the rose as far as Trump is concerned,” according to a former senior Pentagon official, talking about the president’s waning enthusiasm for his defence secretary. It is, he said, “a reflection of Mattis’s efforts to modulate Trump’s mood swings on issues like North Korea and Iran as well as relations with allies”. General Mattis, 67, is one of the group of so-called ‘grown-ups’ in the cabinet, and widely regarded to have formed a well-coordinated team with John Bolton, the national security adviser and Mike Pompeo, secretary of state - even though the defence secretary’s policy instincts are sometimes at odds with the more abrasive Mr Bolton. The other general in the cabinet, John Kelly, the president’s chief of staff, gets on well with General Mattis but his days may be numbered. “Kelly is merely going through the motions at this point,” the former official said. Moving against the two military men in his inner circle is not without risk for Mr Trump. The extraordinary memorial service for Senator John McCain was packed with rows of senior officers in uniform applauding Meghan McCain, his daughter, as she spoke about her father’s legacy as a great American against the “cheap rhetoric” of a president who has never served in the military. Mr Trump retains the support of the majority of the armed forces according to polls, but General Mattis is revered by the services. A dispute over future joint military exercises between the US and South Korea was the latest in a tug of war between the president and defence chief. This year’s planned exercises were cancelled by Mr Trump as a mark of good faith to help motivate North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to start dismantling his nuclear weapons stockpile, following the summit in Singapore in June. General Mattis last week indicated that the next round of exercises for 2019 would go ahead. Mr Trump jumped in quickly, tweeting to emphasise that it was the White House not the Pentagon, that made these sort of decisions. The president picked General Mattis as defence secretary because he admired his record as a combat commander, and military people Mr Trump trusted had recommended him for the job. However since General Mattis took over at the Pentagon in 2017, there have been numerous policy disputes between the two: *The president said he wanted US troops out of Syria as soon as possible. General Mattis made it clear they had to stay to finish the mission. *Mr Trump wanted a close relationship with Russia and for the Russian and American military to work together in Syria. General Mattis said he was happy to continue with the existing arrangement under which the two countries maintained contact to avoid mid-air jet fighter clashes over Syrian territory. He opposed any other military cooperation. *The president proposed a new space force. The defence secretary was against the idea on the grounds it adds to the Pentagon’s bureaucracy and was unnecessary. Mr Trump announced it anyway and General Mattis has been forced to implement his president’s wish. He is trying to do it at minimum cost. When General Mattis was appointed, the view in Washington and in Nato capitals was that he would act as a restraint on a president who appeared to make foreign policy decisions on the hoof and in many respects he has succeeded. Mr Trump accepted that US troops had to stay in Syria, and Afghanistan, and the idea of American and Russian forces working together in Syria soon fell by the way side. “Friction between the president and secretary of defence is not unheard of, but what is generally unheard of is how public the friction is,” another former senior Pentagon official said. “We have a president who apparently feels compelled to share his every thought with everyone, and whose policy-making process seems limited to what he and he alone happens to believe at any particular moment – and which is often subject to change at a moment’s notice.” “We have an unusual situation where a former general is serving as defence secretary. George Marshall did but that was a long time ago [1950-51] and President Truman adored him,” he said. “I think Mattis’s objective, as it was during his time in uniform, is first and foremost to serve the nation. The oath is to the constitution, not the president. I also think he sees himself trying to help the president who had no experience in national security affairs prior to assuming office, to learn on the job,” the former official said. “Failing that, Mattis is trying to limit what he sees as any missteps by the president. At times he tries to take the lead, as with the issue of military exercises in Korea, at the risk of finding himself too far out in front,” he said. History is littered with US defence secretaries who have fallen out with their presidents. Jim Schlesinger, probably the best strategic thinker to serve as defence secretary, from 1973-75, did not get on well with either President Ford or Henry Kissinger, secretary of state. Congress regarded him as too abrasive. He was finally seen as a liability and was eased out. Donald Rumsfeld who served as defence secretary from 1975-77 under President Ford, and from 2001-2006 under President George W Bush, was associated with failed policies, particularly Iraq, and was replaced. Robert McNamara, 1961-68 under Presidents John F Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson, suffered the same fate over Vietnam. Caspar Weinberger, 1981-87, was seen as pushing too hard for increased defence spending and also became a political liability in the latter part of President Reagan’s administration and he was replaced. Chuck Hagel, 2013-2015, came to differ with President Obama on several key policies, most notably on US strategy in Syria, and was sacked. However General Mattis is a determined survivor, and is not a man who wants to be seen to be confronting his own commander-in-chief. He backed down over the space force decision and issued a statement clarifying his remarks about military exercises with South Korea. Mad Dog or Moderate Dog, General Mattis’s advice will likely be indispensable in the months ahead should North Korea talks break down irretrievably, and Kim Jong-un reverts to ballistic-missile tests, or the stand-off with Iran escalates towards a military clash.