Pat Shanahan believes he's set to be named Defense Secretary, but his reputation as the "Boeing guy" is hard to shake. | M. Scott Mahaskey/POLITICO
Politico: 'You have to know how to hit a curveball': Trump’s Pentagon choice fights to win over doubters
Pat Shanahan’s critics call him a weak link on the president's team but the acting defense secretary says he knows how to deal with the unexpected.
The knocks on President Donald Trump’s defense-secretary-in-waiting have been circulating for months behind closed doors in the Pentagon and on Capitol Hill.
Pat Shanahan is the "Boeing guy" who is still doing the bidding of his former employer, his critics inside and outside the administration say. He allows White House appointees, including National Security Adviser John Bolton, to directly contact lower Pentagon officials, according to current and former Defense Department officials who consider it a breach of the chain of command. He obsesses about his image — as shown in the all-black turtleneck ensemble he wore for a February visit to Afghanistan, which earned him mocking comparisons to a Bond villain or Keanu Reeves’ character from “The Matrix.”
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Previous Post: White House To Nominate Patrick Shanahan As U.S. Secretary of Defense (May 9, 2019)
WNU Editor: The White House has still not formally submitted his nomination to the US Senate for confirmation, raising doubts that President Trump is dedicated to having Patrick Shanahan his Secretary of Defense. My guess is that deep inside President Trump wants someone else, but the people he wants are not interested in the job.
1 comment:
He's obviously a much better choice than general Mattis was. POTUS has trouble sometimes in relying on advisors when his own instincts are much more accurate. My suggestion would be to rely on his instincts more and appoint people who will implement his agenda and support his vision.
Unfortunately IMHO general Mattis married himself to the deep state long ago. When forced to choose betwern the deep state and America he chose the deep state. For this he cannot be faulted as this is what most would do in a similar situation. On balance general Mattis's service to our country was exemplary and this is how he should be remembered.
Frankly Mr. Shanahan is a vast improvement over Mattis. Having someone acting to implement your policies as opposed to being opposed to them is a vast improvement. POTUS should trust his instincts more and be less deferential to so called "experts."
The "experts" aren't really that smart anyway. They attended the right cocktail parties and married themselves to the deep state. Hence they became experts!! Today America faces existential threats on multiple fronts and the "experts" are not only not reliable but are counterproductive. POTUS should not rely on them. In fact, doing the exact opposite of what they suggest would probably be prudent.
POTUS is to humble and deferential. He has trouble getting this. My suggestion would be to work towards getting Mr. Shanahan confirmed ASAP as Secretary of Defense.
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