Air Force secretary says most Americans don’t care about Trump, Corker feud

Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson believes the current feud between President Trump and Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) is something largely unwatched outside of Washington.

“Really, most Americans are going on with their daily lives and they don’t really much care about the rhetoric that swirls around this city,” Wilson said Tuesday at Fortune’s Most Powerful Women Summit in Washington.

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Corker has frequently criticized Trump since announcing his retirement, saying the White House is like an “adult day care center” and, in an interview with The New York Times on Sunday, warning that Trump could lead the country into World War III.

The White House on Tuesday continued the feud when it said Corker was partially responsible for the Iran nuclear deal.

Corker also told reporters last week that Defense Secretary James Mattis, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Trump’s chief of staff Gen. John Kelly “separate our country from chaos.”

When asked what she thought about Corker’s comments, Wilson said that “everyone has their own perspective.”

“My personal view is that America is a pretty rock-solid place and we’re a resilient place and sometimes Washington seems to get pretty full of itself.”

Wilson added that the political back-and-forth doesn’t seem to affect work within the Pentagon. “A lot of the stuff that swirls around doesn’t penetrate,” she said. 

Wilson was also asked about how the Air Force has been affected by Trump’s July Twitter announcement to bar transgender people from the military.

She said while there is a small number of people affected, she and service Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein “have tried to make clear that we treat everyone with dignity and respect.”

Trump in August signed a memo that prohibits the military from enlisting transgender people and from using funds to pay for gender transition-related surgery. It also gives Mattis six months to determine what to do with transgender troops who are currently serving.

“When we get new guidance from the secretary of State, we’ll implement that guidance. But every airman who is wearing the uniform is an airman and they’re worthy of dignity and respect,” Wilson said.