Mattis, Trump show signs of discord
Policy clashes grow public as president doubts his loyalty
WASHINGTON — When Defense Secretary Jim Mattis declared last month that he had “no plans” to cancel future joint military exercises with South Korean forces, it brought him a public rebuke from President Donald Trump.
“There is no reason at this time to be spending large amounts of money on joint U.S.-South Korea war games,” Trump fired back the next day in a tweet he labeled “Statement from the White House.” He underscored only “the President” could restart exercises he had suspended after his June summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
The spat highlighted Mattis’ precarious standing with Trump. The president once reveled in the 68-yearold retired Marine general’s reputation as a battle-hardened warrior — calling him “Mad Dog,” much to Mattis’ distress — but recently appears to have wearied of him, reportedly mocking him as “Moderate Dog.”
Current and former Pentagon officials who have observed the relationship firsthand cite growing signs of discord that raise questions about how much longer Mattis, long seen as a steadying force in the Trump Cabinet, will remain at the Pentagon.
More than specific policy disagreements, the growing estrangement stems from Trump’s belief that Mattis is secretly dismissive of him and constantly trying to outmaneuver him, officials say.
“He thinks Mattis isn’t loyal in the way Trump wants all his people to be loyal — publicly, unquestioningly and completely,” said a national security official who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Associates say Mattis’ frustration at Trump’s often impetuous style and penchant for blindsiding the Pentagon with major policy announcements could prompt him eventually to quit.
Once-frequent phone calls between the two after Trump took office last year have dwindled to occasional conversations. Policy clashes that once unfolded in private are increasingly surfacing publicly, often because Trump seems determined to send a message to Mattis that he is in charge.
They have been at odds over Trump’s demand to bar transgender recruits from the military, his call to create a new armed service called space force, his verbal attacks on NATO allies, his suggestions that he may cut U.S. troop levels in Europe and Asia, and on the timetable for removing U.S. troops from Syria.
National security adviser John Bolton’s hard-line approach to Iran and other national security issues mesh better with Trump’s disruptive instincts than Mattis’ often more strategic approach, according to the officials.
Asked last week to describe his relationship with Trump, Mattis replied, “No problem. It’s been the same all along.”
Pressed whether he intended to serve out the rest of Trump’s first term, Mattis replied, “This is not a day I’m going to go further into politics.”
“Secretary Mattis is laser focused on doing his jobensuring the US military remains the most lethal force on the planet,” Pentagon press secretary Dana White said Friday. “There is no daylight between the secretary and president when it comes to supporting our Service members and their mission.”
Journalist Bob Woodward wrote in a book released Tuesday that Mattis has told associates Trump had “a fifth- or sixthgrader” understanding of the challenge on the Korean Peninsula, and that Mattis once disregarded a Trump directive to assassinate Syrian President Bashar Assad. Mattis later described the account as “fiction.”
Trump responded that he was “very happy” with Mattis, and called his condemnation of the book “the nicest quote about me I think I’ve ever had.”
Mattis rose to top Pentagon and NATO commands with a reputation as a fierce battlefield commander.
His swagger initially enthralled Trump, but after returning to the Pentagon as a civilian, Mattis has more often been the voice of military restraint, not the hard-liner he was seen as under Barack Obama.
When Trump vowed massive reprisals against Syria last April for its use of chemical agents against civilians, Mattis and Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the joint chiefs, provided a narrow target list that minimized the risk that Russian troops in Syria might be casualties of U.S. airstrikes, possibly sparking a wider war.
Mattis also has maneuvered Trump away from an abrupt withdrawal of the roughly 4,000 U.S. troops in eastern Syria.
He and others on the national security team argued to Trump that if U.S. troops are pulled out too soon, Islamic State might recover and again threaten Iraq, strengthening Iran.
But Mattis has had to absorb Trump’s frustration at the lack of quick, highly visible military victories.
The tensions have taken a toll on Mattis’ relationship with Trump, some current and former officials say.
Trump is fighting back against the Pentagon’s practice of slow-rolling or even ignoring White House ideas it opposes by staging public events aimed at forcing the Pentagon to get in line.
He did so last month at the Pentagon, where Vice President Mike Pence outlined the White House plan for creation of a space force, forcing Mattis, who had previously questioned the idea of a separate armed service for outer space, to backtrack.
“I was not against setting up a space force,” Mattis told reporters later. “What I was against is rushing to do that before we define those problems.”