Trump has blasted the Obama
administration’s handling of the fight against the terror group. He argued the Iraqis were giving ISIS fighters too much notice about their offensive plans but offered few details on what else he’d do differ- ently, Friedman says. The president-elect indicated dur- ing his campaign he might take a more standoffish approach toward Middle East conflicts to focus on domestic issues such as the economy and in- frastructure development. But recent appointments to his national security team, including Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, USA (Ret), indicate his admin- istration might take a more hawkish approach to international affairs than expected, Friedman says. “Trump during his campaign said things that were consistent with the realist, noninterventionist world- view in terms of being critical of the wars in Iraq and Libya … and being more skeptical about the value of long-term alliances,” Friedman says. “But if voters thought that Trump was going to be an antiwar guy, that doesn’t seem to be the case.” While Trump suggested during the campaign he wouldn’t defend certain NATO alliances if he felt partner nations weren’t holding
60 MILITARY OFFICER JANUARY 2017
up their end of the bargain, Obama said after the election that in his “conversation with the president- elect, [Trump] expressed a great interest in maintaining our core strategic relationships.”
New SecDef Trump’s decision to nominate Mattis to run the Pentagon bucks tra- dition, as the revered Marine general only retired from the military about three years ago. Because the law re- quires that the person who serves as defense secretary be out of uniform for at least seven years, Congress will need to pass legislation that will allow Mattis to fill that role. It’s a rule meant to protect civilian
control of the U.S. military, but Rich- ard Kohn, a defense history expert who has studied and written about civilian-military relations, says Mattis understands the issue well. “I’ve heard him speak on the sub- ject, and I think he understands civil-
Other military upgrades include increasing the number of Marine Corps battalions to 36 as well as adding 100 aircraft to the Air Force.
ian control of the military with great nuance, depth, and breadth,” says Kohn, who teaches at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Mattis retired from the Marine Corps in 2013 after more than four decades in uniform. The former head of U.S. Central Command helped implement the counterin- surgency strategy used in Iraq and Afghanistan. He’s also known for wanting to be downrange with his troops, and his charismatic appeal is legendary among Marines. Many servicemembers have cel-
ebrated Trump’s decision. Col. Mark Cancian, USMCR (Ret), a MOAA member and senior advisor with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, served with Mattis in Iraq. He
PHOTOS: ABOVE, SAMUEL KING JR./USAF; TOP, CPL. RICKY S. GOMEZ, USMC
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