Trump trashes Mattis after exit

Remarks do little to clarify what plans U.S. has for Afghanistan, Syria

WASHINGTON— U.S. President Donald Trump criticized former defence secretary Jim Mattis on Wednesday as acting Pentagon chief Patrick Shanahan stepped into his new job and the military tried to make sense of the president’s plans for the wars in Syria and Afghanistan.

Trump questioned how well Mattis had served as Pentagon chief and pointed out that the retired Marine general had been removed early from his last position as chief of U.S. Central Command over policy disagreements with the Obama administration.

“What’s he done for me? How has he done in Afghanistan? Not too good. Not too good,” Trump said during a cabinet meeting, with Shanahan seated to his left. “I’m not happy with what he’s done in Afghanistan, and I shouldn’t be happy.”

Trump added: “As you know, President Obama fired him, and essentially so did I.”

Neither Mattis nor Shanahan could not be reached for comment. The Pentagon did not respond to questions about Trump’s remarks.

Mattis resigned Dec. 20, citing policy disagreements with the president. Mattis had said he would stay through the end of February to provide continuity during transition to a new leader, but Trump abruptly forced him out days later. Shanahan took over Tuesday. Trump’s comments in the meeting about Syria and Afghanistan added new complications to discussions about U.S. plans in those countries.

After first ordering all 2,000 U.S. troops out of Syria, Trump has since softened on that approach and said Wednesday that the U.S. military will exit Syria “over a period of time.” He has agreed to give the military about four months to completely depart Syria, according to three U.S. officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal policy discussions. That development was first reported by The New York Times.