Vox Popoli

To call General Mattis’s appallingly ineffective performance as Secretary of Defense a disappointment would be a SEVERE understatement. It’s a reminder that no amount of tactical or operational effectiveness means very much when it comes to grand strategy and geopolitical politics, let alone loyalty to American national interests. His letter of resignation:

December 20, 2018

Dear Mr. President:

I have been privileged to serve as our country’ss 26th Secretary of Defense which has allowed me to serve alongside our men and women of the Department in defense of our citizens and our ideals.

I am proud of the progress that has been made over the past two years on some of the key goals articulated in our National Defense Strategy: putting the Department on a more sound budgetary footing, improving readiness and lethality in our forces, and reforming the Department’s business practices for greater performance. Our troops continue to provide the capabilities needed to prevail in conflict and sustain strong U.S. global influence.

One core belief I have always held is that our strength as a nation is inextricably linked to the strength of our unique and comprehensive system of alliances and partnerships. While the US remains the indispensable nation in the free world, we cannot protect our interests or serve that role effectively without maintaining strong alliances and showing respect to those allies. Like you, I have said from the beginning that the armed forces of the United States should not be the policeman of the world. Instead, we must use all tools of American power to provide for the common defense, including providing effective leadership to our alliances. 29 democracies demonstrated that strength in their commitment to fighting alongside us following the 9-11 attack on America. The Defeat ISIS coalition of 74 nations is further proof.

Similarly, I believe we must be resolute and unambiguous in our approach to those countries whose strategic interests are increasingly in tension with ours. It is clear that China and Russia, for example, want to shape a world consistent with their authoritarian model gaining veto authority over other nations’ economic, diplomatic, and security decisions to promote their own interests at the expense of their neighbors, America and our allies. That is why we must use all the tools of American power to provide for the common defense.

My views on treating allies with respect and also being clear-eyed about both malign actors and strategic competitors are strongly held and informed by over four decades of immersion in these issues. We must do everything possible to advance an international order that is most conducive to our security, prosperity and values, and we are strengthened in this effort by the solidarity of our alliances.

Because you have the right to have a Secretary of Defense whose views are better aligned with yours on these and other subjects, I believe it is right for me to step down from my position. The end date for my tenure is February 28, 2019, a date that should allow sufficient time for a successor to be nominated and confirmed as well as to make sure the Department’s interests are properly articulated and protected at upcoming events to include Congressional posture hearings and the NATO Defense Ministerial meeting in February. Further, that a full transition to a new Secretary of Defense occurs well in advance of the transition of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in September in order to ensure stability Within the Department.

I pledge my full effort to a smooth transition that ensures the needs and interests of the 2.15 million Service Members and 732,079 civilians receive undistracted attention of the Department at all times so that they can fulfill their critical, round-the-clock mission to protect the American people.

I very much appreciate this opportunity to serve the nation and our men and women in uniform.

Translation: I’m a sellout, I violated my oath of service, and I never had any intention of actually defending American national interests, much less defending the Constitution against its enemies, foreign and domestic. So, I’m resigning in a hissy fit because you’re not on board with unwinnable perma-war in the Middle East.

It’s just as well. Notice the Mad Poodle’s focus on diplomatic marketing gimmicks, “the common defense”, and the solidarity of alliances with countries that have less ability to project military force than the average Mexican drug cartel. This guy wasn’t a warrior, he was just another corrupt globalist bureaucrat dressed up in a snappy military uniform, complete with fruit salad and red heels. And notice the telling phrase “defense of our citizens and ideals” rather than “our nation and our Constitution”.

What is Mattis’s legacy? Women in the special forces, trannies in the military, and losing a hopeless proxy war to the Russian-Iranian-Syrian alliance in the Middle East? How very impressive. It kind of reminds you of Julies Caesar and Alexander the Great, does it not? Jimmy Carter’s hapless SecDef could have accomplished as much.

Always, always, ALWAYS wait two days before reacting to anything he says, or anything he is supposed to have said. I was always suspicious of the reports that Trump was afraid to let the government shut down over the wall funding.

The prospect of an embarrassing Christmastime shutdown of the US government loomed Friday as President Donald Trump and congressional Democrats remained far apart on a stopgap funding bill held up by discord over money for a border wall.

An air of chaos hung over Washington as a midnight deadline approached for lawmakers and the president to find a way to do a very basic task: keep the government up and running.

If they do not, key agencies will close and many workers will be furloughed right before Christmas without a paycheck.

The sense of turmoil was compounded by a falling stock market and Trump’s abrupt decision to disregard advisers and allies and pull out of Syria and sharply reduce the US troop presence in Afghanistan.

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, seen as a moderating force for an impulsive president, resigned in protest over the Syria decision and Trump’s approach to international alliances that are at the heart of US foreign policy.

On government funding, Trump reversed course on Thursday and rejected a measure that unanimously passed the Senate and was under consideration in the House.

He appeared to harden his demand for $5 billion in funding for the wall on the US-Mexico border, a pet project he has fought for since he began campaigning for president in 2015.

Remember, Trump is surrounded by the very worst sort of people who will not only take your silence for assent, but will twist and pervert literally every sound that comes out of your mouth without hesitation. All of the weasel words that surrounded the media narrative about Trump’s preemptive cucking on the budget should have been your first sign: “the Trump administration has signaled” and so forth.

All that means is that some subordinates in the administration are trying to influence Trump to go with the flow. It doesn’t mean a damn thing with regards to the President’s policy or what his actual decision will be. And given that “Mad Poodle” Mattis actually resigned in a hissy fit over Trump’s decision to stop fighting an unwinnable perma-war in the Middle East that is of no benefit whatsoever to Americans – that’s what the neocon hysteria is really about –  it’s clear that the President has been under incredible lobbying pressure from Congress, from his advisers, and from the financial industry.

You don’t think it’s an accident that the stock market is being crashed now, do you? This is all designed to put pressure on the God-Emperor to surrender to the World Democratic Revolutionaries and the Democrats.