Washington • President Donald Trump, who aides said has been frustrated by news coverage of Defense Secretary Jim Mattis's scathing resignation letter, abruptly announced Sunday that he was removing Mattis two months before his planned departure and installing Patrick Shanahan as acting defense secretary.
Shanahan, a former Boeing executive who has been Mattis' deputy at the Pentagon, will assume the top job on an acting capacity beginning Jan. 1, Trump said.
Mattis resigned in protest last week after Trump announced the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Syria - a move that Mattis and others on the national security team strongly counseled the president against.
In his Thursday resignation letter, Mattis delivered a sharp rebuke of Trump's worldview and cast the president's foreign policy positions as a threat to the nation. Trump has complained to advisers about the brutal media commentary that ensued.
Mattis said in his letter that he would resign his post on Feb. 28, to allow for a smooth transition to the next defense secretary. But Trump decided to hasten the process, announcing Sunday on Twitter that Shanahan would replace Mattis imminently.
“I am pleased to announce that our very talented Deputy Secretary of Defense, Patrick Shanahan, will assume the title of Acting Secretary of Defense starting January 1, 2019,” Trump wrote. “Patrick has a long list of accomplishments while serving as Deputy, & previously Boeing. He will be great!”
