Mattis picked as US defence secy
Former marine general and Trump agree on many issues, but disagree on use of torture and Iran deal
President-elect Donald Trump on Thursday named retired marine general James Mattis, a widely respected figure in the US armed services who is also called the “Warrior Monk” and “Mad Dog Mattis”, as his secretary of defence.
That leaves Trump with only the secretary of state berth, the remaining top cabinet position with international ramifications, to fill, having to choose from an increasingly contentious field of contenders led by Mitt Romney.
Trump announced Mattis’ appointment in his typical fashion, at a rally in Cincinnati, Ohio, the first of a string of stops together labelled the thank-you tour.
“We are going to appoint ‘Mad Dog’ Mattis as our secretary of defence,” Trump said. “But we’re not announcing it till Monday, so don’t tell anybody.”
Trump and Mattis agree on a lot of issues but disagree on some very crucial ones, including the use of torture and the Iran nuclear deal. Mattis, a bachelor, really had no competition. But his confirmation may be tricky, requiring a congressional waiver of current law that makes it mandatory for a nominee for defence secretary to be a civilian for at least seven years.
Mattis retired in 2013. But there is precedence. President Harry Truman got a waiver for Gen George Marshall, when he named him defence secretary in 1950 — he had been out of military only for five years (10 was the rule then).
Trump had given enough signals he was leaning towards Mattis, crediting him with changing his views on the use of torture as an interrogation tool. While the two of them may agree on a lot of issues, they disagree on some very crucial ones, such as the Iran nuclear deal. While critical of it, Mattis doesn’t favour its cancellation as do most Republicans.
This is a crucial appointment for India, which would be following it closely for signs of continuity, or the lack of it, with present defence secretary Ashton Carter, who has done more possibly for ties with India than any of his predecessors. Analysts were unsure yet of the implications of Mattis’s appointment for ties with India, but a legislation currently on route to passage in congress will make it difficult for him or Trump to downgrade ties without repealing the law.
A section of the National Defense Authorization Act for 2017, the US military budget for the coming year, commits the Trump administration and all others, irrespective of who was in charge, to treating India as a “major defence partner”.