Free Republic

On Saturday, Brett McGurk submitted his resignation and is leaving the Trump administration. McGurk served as the US envoy in a global anti-ISIS coalition and reportedly resigned amid President Trump’s decision to pull out of Syria—a decision which also reportedly led to the resignation of Defense Secretary James Mattis.

One of NewsBusters' classification categories is "Covert Liberal Activists," and my antennae immediately went up when Lauren Leader was introduced on today's Morning Joe as "co-founder and CEO of All In Together, "a non-partisan, women's civic and political organization." It didn't take much digging to determine that "non-partisan" Leader and her All In Together sidekicks are liberals. The topic of the opening segment was the chaotic border-crossing attempts yesterday, and President Trump's authorization to use force, lethal if necessary, to prevent illegal entry. Of all the panelists, including steadfast liberals like Mike Barnicle and John Heilemann, "non-partisan" Leader was the...

The Pentagon confirmed Thursday hundreds of U.S troops are being sent to the southern border with Mexico in order to stop a Central American caravan that has swelled to 10,000 people. BREAKING: U.S. official says hundreds more U.S. troops expected to deploy to southern border as caravan continues journey north— Lucas Tomlinson (@LucasFoxNews) October 25, 2018 UPDATE: At least 800 U.S. military active-duty forces expected to deploy to southern border, troops largely engineers, doctors and lawyers: U.S. official— Lucas Tomlinson (@LucasFoxNews) October 25, 2018 Earlier this week President Trump threatened to send the military to the border and administration officials...

In a meeting with U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis in June, Chinese President Xi Jinping vowed that Bejing “cannot lose even one inch of the territory” in the South China Sea. That’s about as plain a warning as one gets: China will defend, militarily, it’s outsized claims in a body of water through which one-third of all global trade passes. The U.S. would have little difficulty in taking out militarily significant targets on any of the islands in question. But that’s not really the point. Through the construction of these artificial islands-turned-military bases, China acted brazenly but in a calculated...

The White House on Monday labeled Bob Woodward "reckless" and "careless" after some administration officials refuted claims attributed to them in his new book "Fear: Trump in the White House," ratcheting up its war of words with the Watergate reporter. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders also didn't rule out a lawsuit against Woodward. "A number of people have come out and said Woodward never even reached out to corroborate statements attributed to them, which seems incredibly reckless for a book to make such outrageous claims to not even take the time to get a $10 fact-checker to call...

Secretary of Defense James Mattis is denying making the negative statements about President Donald Trump that are claimed in a new book by the Washington Post’s Bob Woodward.And he’s not leaving any room for doubt.“The contemptuous words about the president attributed to me in Woodward’s book were never uttered by me or in my presence,” Mattis said in a statement, according to Washington Examiner. “While I generally enjoy reading fiction, this is a uniquely Washington brand of literature, and his anonymous sources do not lend credibility.”In Twitter posts Tuesday, Trump also gave his opinion on Woodward’s book, calling it “discredited”...

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has rejected an offer by the US defence chief and other top American officials to buy F-16 fighter jets, saying such an acquisition would be “utterly useless” because his country needs lighter combat aircraft to fight insurgents. Duterte scoffed at the offer on Thursday, saying it had been floated in a letter by Defence Secretary James Mattis, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross. The offer came after he was slammed by the US for his deadly crackdown on illegal drugs, he said.

Shortened title. Full title: Military Atheist Group Wants to Throw Air Force Commander 'Behind Prison Bars' for His Christian Faith The Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) sent a formal complaint this week to Defense Secretary James Mattis calling for an investigation of Brig. Gen. E. John Teichert, a Christian and the newly installed commander of the 412 Test Wing at Edwards Air Force Base in California. The group is furious at Teichert for posting links to articles, a Christmas video, and scriptures on his personal website called Prayer at Lunchtime for the United States. The website also has a list...

But testifying before Congress Thursday morning, Defense Secretary James Mattis seemed more cautious. "I believe there was a chemical attack and we're looking for the actual evidence," Mattis said. U.S. officials say blood samples provided by medical workers confirm the presence of chemicals but do not tell which side used them -- the regime or, as the Russians have claimed, rebels seeking to overthrow the regime. An international team of experts is expected to arrive in Syria on Saturday, but even if they are allowed to visit the scene of the attack, they will not be able to determine who...

A Mattis-Bolton accord on Jordan replacing the PLO in future negotiations with Israel will undoubtedly reinforce Trump's preparedness to make this long-overdue call Mattis-Bolton accord can sway Trump to dump PLO for Jordan President Trump’s possible call for Jordan to replace the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) as Israel’s negotiating partner under Trump’s soon-to-be-released “ultimate deal” will be considerably strengthened if Trump’s newly-appointed National Security Adviser - John Bolton - and Secretary of Defense - James “Mad Dog” Mattis - concur on such a move. Bolton has supported this strategy since 2009‚Äì telling Eric Shawn on 21 January 2018:

Secretary of Defense James Mattis dispelled reports Tuesday that he was apprehensive about working with President Trump’s incoming National Security Advisor John Bolton."I'll tell you right up front, it's going to be a partnership, we are going to go forward," Mattis told reporters during a news conference at the Pentagon.When asked about his differing world views with Bolton, Mattis responded, "I hope that there's some different world views. That's the normal thing you want unless you want group think."Mattis acknowledged that the two hadn’t met yet but said Bolton was coming to the Pentagon later this week for discussions."We are...

The U.S. has no evidence to confirm reports from aid groups and others that the Syrian government has used the deadly chemical sarin on its citizens, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Friday. “We have other reports from the battlefield from people who claim it’s been used,” Mattis told reporters at the Pentagon. “We do not have evidence of it.” He said he was not rebutting the reports. “We’re looking for evidence of it, since clearly we are dealing with the Assad regime that has used denial and deceit to hide their outlaw actions,” Mattis said. Syrian President Bashar Assad denies...

President Donald Trump signed a military spending bill on Tuesday, promising a “strong military” with the best equipment during his presidency. “We need our military, its got to be ‘perfecto,’” Trump said, urging Congress to remove military sequester caps and pass a clean funding bill for the government next year. Trump called the military funding bill a “momentous“ occasion and a great step in funding the “greatest fighting force in the history of the world.” He said that the bill increased the size of the armed forces budget for the first time in seven years, and included the largest military...

Well, maybe the Crazy Little Fat Guy in North Korea isn’t quite so crazy after all. – Shortly after Defense Secretary General James Mattis warned that the firing of North Korean missiles in the direction of any U.S. state or territory would be an act of war and treated by the U.S. with an overwhelming response, the Crazy Little Fat Guy appearsto have backed down. The Crazy Little Fat Guy stated that he has decided not to launch the threatened four nuclear-armed missiles at Guam, a U.S. territory, saying he would “wait a little longer.” Mr. Crazy went on to...

Donald Trump earned respect from the Washington establishment for appointing three of the nation's most accomplished generals to direct his national security policy: James Mattis (secretary of defense), H.R. McMaster (national security adviser) and John Kelly (secretary of homeland security). In the first five months of the Trump administration, the three generals -- along with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, the former Exxon Mobil CEO -- have already recalibrated America's defenses. At home, illegal immigration is down by some 70 percent. Abroad, a new policy of principled realism seeks to re-establish deterrence through credible threats of retaliation. The generals are...

Sec. of Defense James Mattis, known for his frank quotes about the realities of war, offered up a line befitting his nickname, “Mad Dog,” during an interview airing Sunday. “What keeps you awake at night?” CBS “Face the Nation” host John Dickerson asked Mattis. “Nothing,” a stonefaced Mattis responded. “I keep other people awake at night.” WATCH: (Video) Mattis’ remark is sure to join a long list of the former Marine general’s most memorable quotes. “When you men get home and face an anti-war protester, look at him in the eyes and shake his hand. Then, wink at his girlfriend

Secretary of Defense James Mattis appeared on CBS' "Face the Nation" this morning and spoke with James Dickerson about a number of national security issues, including ISIS, North Korea, the Manchester bombing, NATO, and the Paris climate agreement. Mattis, a retired General and former Commandant of the United States Central Command, had a storied Marine career and was hailed as "The most revered Marine of his generation" upon his retirement in 2013. To say that he's probably seen some things is an understatement. He's previously said, “I don’t lose any sleep at night over the potential for failure. I cannot even spell the word.” What...

Sec. of Defense James Mattis, known for his frank quotes about the realities of war, offered up a line befitting his nickname, “Mad Dog,” during an interview airing Sunday. “What keeps you awake at night?” CBS “Face the Nation” host John Dickerson asked Mattis. “Nothing,” a stonefaced Mattis responded. “I keep other people awake at night.”

“I do not fear Trump. We must thank the new American president because he showed the real face of America and because he exposed what we have been saying for decades about the political, moral and economic corruption in it.” This is the recent statement made by Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei against the newly-elected US administration. Yes, we’re passing through a new phase. There has been a major transformation following the reactive years of isolationism which show the depth of the roots that America has returned to in terms of engaging with world crises and contributing to managing...

President Donald Trump said Friday that he will defer to the judgment of Defense Secretary James Mattis that torture and waterboarding should continue to be banned in the interrogations of terror suspects. "He has stated publicly that he does not necessarily believe in torture or waterboarding or however you want to define it," Trump said of Mattis, a retired Marine general who had commands in Iraq and Afghanistan. "I don't necessarily agree, but he [Mattis] will override because I'm giving him that power." "I'm going to rely on him" on so-called "enhanced interrogation techniques," Trump said, though "I happen to...