President Trump indicated Wednesday that he was in no rush to name a permanent successor for Defense Secretary James Mattis, saying that the new acting Pentagon chief Patrick Shanahan “could be there for a long time.”
The president made the remarks during a surprise visit to Iraq on Wednesday, according to Reuters.
Trump, who on Sunday announced on Twitter that he was pushing Mattis out early, said that Shanahan, the current deputy Defense secretary, would serve as acting Pentagon chief starting on Jan. 1.{mosads}
A former Boeing executive, Shanahan has served in government for less than two years, being named Mattis’s deputy in July 2017. He has primarily been involved in procurement and budgeting while at the Pentagon.
“Patrick has a long list of accomplishments while serving as Deputy, & previously Boeing,” Trump wrote Sunday on Twitter. “He will be great!”
Mattis announced his resignation last week after Trump signaled he planned to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria.
After reportedly attempting to sway the president from the withdrawal — a move the defense chief strongly opposed – Mattis resigned.
In his resignation letter, Mattis said his world views did not “align” with Trump’s and that he would remain at the Pentagon through Feb. 28. The letter and its corresponding negative coverage for the administration reportedly angered Trump, who days later announced that Mattis would leave at the end of the month.