Democrats OK with letting Mad Dog into Pentagon
Democratic lawmakers will not take issue with an expedited process designed to allow former General James Mattis to serve as US President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the military, says House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi.
“I don’t think that will be an obstacle — maybe for some,” stated the California Democrat on Wednesday.
The future president nominated the hawkish commander, known as “Mad Dog,” during a "Thank You Tour" stop in Fayetteville, North Carolina, on Tuesday.
Apart from confirmation by the Senate, Mattis would also need a Democratic-backed waiver so he can be assigned the post.
The hawkish general, who retired in 2013, cannot be appointed to the post as law requires defense secretaries to be out of uniform for at least seven years before reclaiming the position.
The law is cited as an effort to maintain civilian control of the US military.
“The overriding principal since the revolution of our country has been the civilian control of the military. Only in recent history was that diverted from … in 1950 when George Marshall was granted a waiver to serve as secretary of defense even though he had not been out of the military for seven years,” Pelosi said.
She further suggested that Mattis is a better option presented by Trump than she had expected.
“This is not General Marshall. But compared to some of the other people he could put forth, you have to make a judgment.”
The general, who is supposed to be put at helm in Pentagon after all the efforts, has been involved in several key military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Like Trump, Mattis is also an opponent of the Iran nuclear agreement, which was reached last year between Iran and the world powers, including the US.
Also known as “Warrior Monk,” Mattis served as the commander of the US military’s Central Command (CENTCOM) from August 2010 to March 2013.
But US President Barack Obama purportedly decided to remove him -- about five months earlier than expected -- from his National Security Council over his confrontational military strategy with regard to Iran.
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