James Mattis (Former Trump Defense Secretary) Denounces President Trump, Describes Him as a Threat to the Constitution

He's right

It's about time! Thank you for finally speaking out...

He goes on to contrast the American ethos of unity with Nazi ideology. “Instructions given by the military departments to our troops before the Normandy invasion reminded soldiers that ‘The Nazi slogan for destroying us … was “Divide and Conquer.” Our American answer is “In Union there is Strength.”’ We must summon that unity to surmount this crisis—confident that we are better than our politics.”

Yes!

F I N A L L Y!!

His full statement

IN UNION THERE IS STRENGTH I have watched this week’s unfolding events, angry and appalled. The words “Equal Justice Under Law” are carved in the pediment of the United States Supreme Court. This is precisely what protesters are rightly demanding. It is a wholesome and unifying demand—one that all of us should be able to get behind. We must not be distracted by a small number of lawbreakers. The protests are defined by tens of thousands of people of conscience who are insisting that we live up to our values—our values as people and our values as a nation.

When I joined the military, some 50 years ago, I swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution. Never did I dream that troops taking that same oath would be ordered under any circumstance to violate the Constitutional rights of their fellow citizens—much less to provide a bizarre photo op for the elected commander-in-chief, with military leadership standing alongside.

We must reject any thinking of our cities as a “battlespace” that our uniformed military is called upon to “dominate.” At home, we should use our military only when requested to do so, on very rare occasions, by state governors. Militarizing our response, as we witnessed in Washington, D.C., sets up a conflict—a false conflict—between the military and civilian society. It erodes the moral ground that ensures a trusted bond between men and women in uniform and the society they are sworn to protect, and of which they themselves are a part. Keeping public order rests with civilian state and local leaders who best understand their communities and are answerable to them. James Madison wrote in Federalist 14 that “America united with a handful of troops, or without a single soldier, exhibits a more forbidding posture to foreign ambition than America disunited, with a hundred thousand veterans ready for combat.” We do not need to militarize our response to protests. We need to unite around a common purpose. And it starts by guaranteeing that all of us are equal before the law.

Instructions given by the military departments to our troops before the Normandy invasion reminded soldiers that “The Nazi slogan for destroying us…was ‘Divide and Conquer.’ Our American answer is ‘In Union there is Strength.’” We must summon that unity to surmount this crisis—confident that we are better than our politics.

Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people—does not even pretend to try. Instead he tries to divide us. We are witnessing the consequences of three years of this deliberate effort. We are witnessing the consequences of three years without mature leadership. We can unite without him, drawing on the strengths inherent in our civil society. This will not be easy, as the past few days have shown, but we owe it to our fellow citizens; to past generations that bled to defend our promise; and to our children. We can come through this trying time stronger, and with a renewed sense of purpose and respect for one another. The pandemic has shown us that it is not only our troops who are willing to offer the ultimate sacrifice for the safety of the community. Americans in hospitals, grocery stores, post offices, and elsewhere have put their lives on the line in order to serve their fellow citizens and their country. We know that we are better than the abuse of pexecutive authority that we witnessed in Lafayette Square. We must reject and hold accountable those in office who would make a mockery of our Constitution. At the same time, we must remember Lincoln’s “better angels,” and listen to them, as we work to unite.

Only by adopting a new path—which means, in truth, returning to the original path of our founding ideals—will we again be a country admired and respected at home and abroad.

I liked Tillerson’s comment better: “He’s a fucking moron.”

Dump is trying to turn Americans against each other? Wow, GROUNDBREAKING! 🙄

R8 Nobody said deplorables are quick to catch on!

you know what, good for him

it's about time but I'm glad he finally did it

deplorables today are of course defending Trump's actions on Monday night

Deplorables do not have the critical thinking skills to take in such information. They will NEVER catch on. They will never realize such a "statement" has been made.

Preaching to the choir. Nobody but Democrats will care.

Lots of Dump’s ass lickers are trying to be on the right side of history right now by condemning him. Sorry toots, YOU own him and all his mess. We won’t forgive and we sure as shit won’t forget. You enabled him.

R13 I have to agree with you. Now everyone wants to dump on Trump. Where was Mattis last year? Even the last few months? It's easy to pile on now.

Where was this Republican resistance when we Impeached the bastard?

Yes, it’s easy to pile on now, but need I remind everyone...we are going to need every bit of that support in November, since we know Dump will cheat in every possible way to win.

Oh Honey, they resisted impeachment! They resisted hard!

R16 the deplorables don’t care. You really think this man is trying to help the US NOW? Nope, he only cares about his legacy.

R16 is correct! Better late than never, but we need these people saying thing on record! He worked with the man. He was appointed by him! It makes it much more credible and impactful than someone like Pelosi or Newsom saying it!

R19 the deplorables do not care. This is a self serving move by a coward who didn’t have the balls to stand up until his legacy was on the line.

Point one: Won’t make an iota of difference.

Point two: He was also on the BOD of Theranos.

R18, are you saying we won’t need every single vote in November? We won’t need those independents who voted for Dump who now hate him? Or any of those people who’ve changed their minds? Are you that sure Biden will win without any of their votes? Are you that naive? Are you that naive that Dump won’t lie, cheat and try to steal this election?

Thank you. Just thank you.

R20, Okay, Mary! Settle down! It will be impactful With semi educated deplorables on the fence! (turn on CNN)! R21 Types like division deplorable

I disagree that only the left will care. Some of the conservatives and diehard Republican voters I grew up with were forged into that identity because of their patriotism. They believe in God, the flag, the police, the military and country music. In the past week, some police have been shown to be brutal tyrants and Mattis, one of America's top officers, has agreed with Taylor Swift.

They might not vote for Biden but they won't vote for Mango Mussolini either.

A rat leaving a sinking ship.

I wonder if it was a change of heart which caused him to speak out or if they have something over him which is going to now leak.

Something just occurred to me—deplorables are very likely very insecure, just like their leader. If it looks like everyone is turning against Dump, I think it’s very possible they’ll eventually pile on too. After all, they probably don’t want to be associated with a loser any more than Dump does.

Thanks for finally getting on board, Mattis, but some of us had figured this out before November 8, 2016.

OP's linked article does not have a date line. Is it a phony?

R24 those illiterate assholes don’t read the Atlantic.

They're not very pacific, R31

Do they read anything?

[Quote] Do they read anything?

Menus

Never forget what a piece of shit this guy is. Truly despicable. But yes, I’m glad he’s come out and said this.

He is military so I can forgive him not wanting to speak out and break custom. But he did so Thank You.

As for any other Republican (except Romney- he gets a pass but juuuuust barely since he supported all those terrible unqualified judges) none of them will ever be forgiven. I don't want to hear any of the current Republicans in Congress to speak out against him. None. Fuck off. You all deserve to be voted out and exiled. Just keep your mouth SHUT now. Shouldn't be too hard to do. You've had a lot of practice.

"He's learned his lesson"- Suzie Collins (R-Kick in the Cuntbone, ME)

we now have the Trump admin and the right wing media trying to distract from the disgrace of Trump having Barr order officers to spray the crowd the other night with a debate on pepper spray vs. tear gas

it's good Matthis is speaking out

NYT's Robert Draper:

Mattis is still holding back, though. He's privately told friends that Trump's behavior is far worse than the reports & that the republic is on shaky footing. He knows so much more than he's currently divulging.

I figured as much r38. We have no idea how bad it really is. But THEY know.

NOW a warning?

Better late than never...

R39 they KNEW yet didn’t have the balls to convict the motherfucker. Complicit! Every last one of them.

R38, yeah, Mattis will divulge after Trump nukes California into the Pacific Ocean.

[quote] I figured as much [R38]. We have no idea how bad it really is. But THEY know.

What's so horrendous is that anyone who has ever had to deal with a scared, feral animal knows how vicious and unpredictable they are. This thing is mentally ill and surrounded by religious zealots and greedy relatives.

R38 I think we all know it is far worse than what we know. He will come out with something stronger later when everybody is paying attention.

I mean, what if Dump actually said something like this to his staff? Even jokingly... they’d have to remove him, right? RIGHT?

I thought he had learned his lesson. But now I am concerned again.

Mattis did say this has been going on for 3 years. Some there really do believe they are the last line of defense I guess. There needs to be severe punishment for those who have aided and abetted him.

Message to all Republicans: If you can't stomach voting for Biden or any other Democrat-- just DON'T VOTE.

A lot of disgusted Republicans are voting for Biden. I think Biden will be far more radical (in a good way) than people think.

[quote] Mattis is still holding back, though. He's privately told friends that Trump's behavior is far worse than the reports & that the republic is on shaky footing. He knows so much more than he's currently divulging.

Wont make a difference. He'll still win.

If it's worse than what he's saying, he needs to just man up and speak truth to power!

JFC, dude, are you gonna wait until you see protesters and demonstrators bayonetted in the streets before you speak up!

By that time it will be too late!

[Quote]What's so horrendous is that anyone who has ever had to deal with a scared, feral animal knows how vicious and unpredictable they are.

This 100K%. My mother who was a horrifying lifelong NPD (she picked irrational, unjustified fights with every next door neighbor we had -- among the endless stories I could tell about her) developed Alzheimer's. I was her sole caretaker for 6+ years. She's been in a nursing home for 5 years and I still have nightmares about her.

Anger was her modal emotion her entire life and this tendency exploded as her new disease developed. She also seemed to develop more energy during the earlier stages. There was no satisfactory answer for any of the irrational demands and no dampening of her will to get what she wanted. This would continue in one form or another from dawn until she went to bed and resumed the next morning.

This sort of thing is that WH staff has to deal and I assure you the irrationality is escalating. They likely have never dealt w/dementia and the clearer headed ones are at a loss while the greedier ones are trying to figure out how to cash in one last time. He will be unstoppable in the current climate. At least my mother could barely speak English, had no power ot money, and most who met her disliked her, so the damage was limited.

It's past time we meet our friend.

[quote] To be sure, Snodgrass isn’t a perfect fit for Anonymous’s public profile. He wasn’t a White House official, did not work during Trump’s transition (as Anonymous hints he or she did), resigned his job before many events described in the book, and would not have been present at many White House meetings. But compared to other widely rumored suspects whose backgrounds I researched, Snodgrass checks three boxes: He can write. He knows and cares about national security—a major theme of A Warning. And, to borrow from his description of Mattis, he is “a badass” who eventually offended his hero and won a pre-publication battle with the Pentagon over the release of Holding the Line. In fact, Mattis’s spokeswoman has denied that Mattis read Snodgrass’s book and dismissed his former speechwriter as “a junior staffer who took notes at some meetings,” thereby suggesting that note-taking was a point of contention for Snodgrass. No other contender seems to share Snodgrass’s wide-ranging knowledge, story-telling skills, and willingness to make enemies to make important points. And as a self-described Type A personality, Snodgrass probably could write two books at once.

Definitely the beginning of the end for Cheeto Mussolini. Mattis’ statement is basically a green light for many others to come forward with their feelings of disdain and disgust.

I hope r56. I wonder about timing though. Would it be better if they all decided to vent in quick succession or should some be saved for closer to November?

Maybe Mattis knows the claims of Anonymous are true and he thinks proof is coming shortly.

There’s a reason he came forward now. He’s a Republican, they don’t give a damn about anything but themselves. Maybe Anonymous is going to leak that Mattis knew something and didn’t act on it, and Mattis is trying to save himself.

It’s astounding to me how all these people who took an oath to defend the Constitution just sit there and fiddle while Rome burns to the ground. Maybe they’ll put out the last smoldering ash of our country with the heel of their shoe after everything else is a glass parking lot. Disgusting.

[quote] Definitely the beginning of the end for Cheeto Mussolini.

I hope he meets the same end as his namesake.

I disagree about Mattis. I actually think he's a real patriot. If he's a republican he's the old guard like my father. I think he went into the admin thinking he could curtail some of Dumpy's poor impulses.

He reminds me of when an out-of-power Cheney came out for gay marriage (then went silent again when his precious Uday ran for Congress). In other words: Mattis is gutless like every other one of these people because they always do it a long time after they become "former."

Where's our sweet DLer who has a massive Mattis crush?

I was thinking the same thing a few hours ago, r62. I'm waiting for wailing any second now.

I’m lighting Paltrow’s vagina scented candles in the bunker tonight!

Mattis is widely respected on both sides

Now we finally find out about the "Mad Dog" moniker

Perhaps Mattis wanted to wait, until he could be part of a FUCK YOU, DONALD, October Surprise but the tear gassing of Americans on American soil by the military for a g-damn photo op moved up the timetable.

Hopefully, he will tell all and bring a fuckin satchel of receipts, soon. It won't get Anusmouth out of the WH immediately, but would more than get the ball rolling and help cut through Trumper bootlickers left on the GOP. You don't want that type of chaos two weeks before the General Election, things need to be stable enough for everyone to safely vote.

Start with this op-ed now, get the right people to cock-block him, build a wall around him and his buddies with evidence and loss of support and set it all on fire.

The Dear Leader is (predictably) having a temper tantrum on Twitter now over Mattis. 'Cause, you know, he hires the best people.

It’s about time he spoke up. Frankly it’s taking them too long to say this.

LONG OVERDUE. I hope more former cabinet members speak up soon.

Love Trump going on twitter like a whiny bitch and complaining about how awful Mattis is. Uh, then why did you hire him in the first place?

Who thinks that Mattis could have been the long speculated about Anonymous?

he totally is

r72, yup

I wish Rex Tillerson would come forward and expand on his thoughts...... “He’s a fucking moron”. Or is that all we need to know.

I will always admire the Never T'ers. They came out before the election (most of them) and voted for Hillary. A few came around early enough I accept them into the club but some came far too late. Mattis is a bit of an exception since he is military. Anybody else who comes out now? Fuck em. This nation is in shambles just as we all predicted it would be all thanks to the guy in the WH and his corrupt administration.

Any military person who worships Trump, truly is too stupid to live. A draft dodging idiot who literally put in his will that he'd cut off any baby Marla had if the kid joined the military.

How lacking in self-respect must you be, to serve your country and worship a chickenshit clown who never served anyone but himself and looks down on serving to the point that he'd financially cut off his own kid if they wanted to serve their country.

[quote]Mattis’ statement is basically a green light for many others to come forward with their feelings of disdain and disgust.

Yes, this.

This would be a good time for that.

^^^B*tch, you set my ponytail on fire!

How is Fox handling this?

General Mattis is way too late to the party. He's come forward with his big stand against Trump only after 3 ex-presidents and multiple ex-military have stepped forward. It's easy to pile on now. I agree with the upthreads who write that Mattis is trying to protect his legacy. He also misses his relevance, the parade is passing him by.

R38 / R39 Mattis knows so much more than he's telling? He's expressed his truth to his friends? What a fucking jerk. He might have had a great military career but now he's just looking for attention because the other big dogs (ex-presidents, ex-military) are stepping up. He let Trump abuse him before and after he was Secty of DOD. And all he did was hide behind some non-existent code of silence.

He's expressed his truth to his friends? You mean all those Alfalfa Club members and other 1% - ers? Wow. Like they didn't abide this shitshow and try to top each others' insider information...

[quote]He will come out with something stronger later when everybody is paying attention.

R38 That's called 'piling on' -- It took courage for ex-Presidents Obama, Bush, and Carter to speak out. Mattis is late to the dance but now wants back in with the cool kids. Thank you for your service, sir, but it's over.

Better late than never, but Jesus Christ!!!

What took Mattis so goddamn long?! You should have done this ages ago Come on, man. Fucking help. Stop sitting on the sidelines. Campaign against this Bunker Boy motherfucker.

Mattis took an oath to the Constitution when he became Secretary of Defense and every time he was promoted in the military. After dealing with Trump - even after a few months - why didn't he respect that oath and either expose Trump or quietly resign and crawl into a hole.

[Quote]I hope he meets the same end as his namesake.

Don't forget to include Trump's Clara Petacci, Melania.

[Quote]Busty but not beautiful, neither charismatic nor clever nor cultured, Claretta was, Mr. Bosworth admits, “unremarkable.” (In an earlier book, “Mussolini’s Italy,” he put it more sharply, calling her “an airhead of the most predictable kind.”)

[Quote]She also declared herself “an anti-Semite by racial instinct,” full of “a profound pride that springs from my utterly pure stock.”

Is she bad enough to be hung from her ankles in Lafayette Park? A public head shaving?

You know it feels good when these guys finally let it rip.

Bet he’s sleeping like a baby tonight.

I hope we can continue to hold Drumph's feet to the fire as well as his cabal of GOP asslickers. Can we please extend this pressure for the next 5 months? Maybe NDP can bring another impeachment forward to put to paper all those GOP senators that are holding hearings for Rosenstein. At least this unrest has silenced that nauseating spectacle going on now. This would also be a good time to have Orangutan's taxes unveiled and to have Meuller's grand jury testimonies to be heard, but we already know how corrupt and compromised the Supreme Court is...

[quote]Bet he’s sleeping like a baby tonight.

R7 He's been sleeping like a baby and cashing in on speaking engagements since his retirement/firing in 1918. And let's not forget his reinstatement on the board of General Dynamics...

^^I'm laughing and drunk! 1918 = 2018.

[quote] R15: Where was this Republican resistance when we Impeached the bastard?

While I agree with you on one level, I am tempted to think that this “Republican resistance” may actually be resultant, in part, from the impeachment. The impeachment informed and educated. It created and widened cracks in Trump ‘s armor. It filled the news cycles with derogatory info about Trump that was hard to avoid. It’s not something that I think can be measured, but it is certainly how it was supposed to work.

Only 1 senator dared mouth a pushback on Trump at the Impeachment.

I réalise corona and Black Lives Matter are the blows necessary. Trump was well the road to re-election before The CHI....NA flu.

Yes, I'm glad he made the statement, finally. But it really irritates me to see former Trump administration officials now come out against Trump. They may want to pretend differently, but they all knew exactly what kind of lowdown corrupt garbage Trump was before they took the jobs, yet they took them anyway and did everything in their power to protect him, as long as they were getting a paycheck.

They don't take those cabinet level and senior staff level jobs for the "paycheck" for that job. Rather, it ups their value as consultants and board members and senior staff in the private sector.

That's all part of the "paycheck". That paycheck doesn't stop once they're out of the administration. It just gets paid by other entities in one way or another for the rest of their lives.

Wasn’t Mattis involved with the Theranos debacle? Gotta work the speaker circuit to gain back any $ he invested there.

I hate he waited this long, but I’m thankful he was finally moved to speak publicly. Mattis didn’t have to speak out at all he could have lived out his life in his peaceful 1% bubble and never said a peep.

This is big. Most military people love Trump but love leaders like James Mattis even more. This will play big in heartland America helping us to win back states like Michigan and Pennsylvania.

BTW, Que the Trump response: "Mattis is an alcoholic failure, and failed at everything in life."

Also, I want all of you guys to remember your Trumpster friends. 2O years from now these people will swear to god they never voted Trump. Remember these bitches.

Is it a requirement that they still be alive 20 years from now r98?

R96, Mattis “failed at everything in life”?

Isn’t he a general? Did he just keep failing upwards until he failed all the way to the top?

John Allen, retired U.S. Marine Corps four-star general, and former commander of the NATO International Security Assistance Force and U.S. Forces in Afghanistan, chimes in:

The slide of the United States into illiberalism may well have begun on June 1, 2020. Remember the date. It may well signal the beginning of the end of the American experiment.

The president of the United States stood in the Rose Garden of the White House on Monday, railed against weak governors and mayors who were not doing enough, in his mind, to control the unrest and the rioters in their cities, and threatened to deploy the U.S. military against American citizens.

While June 1 could easily be confused with a day of shame and peril if we listen to Donald Trump, if instead we listen to Terrence Floyd, it is a day of hope. So mark your calendars—this could be the beginning of the change of American democracy not to illiberalism, but to enlightenment. But it will have to come from the bottom up. For at the White House, there is no one home.

I don't believe that the military loves Plumpy. He's a draft dodging, undisciplined buffoon who has dissed veterans.

On Tuesday, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley affirmed that the U.S. military is to "support and defend the Constitution and the values embedded within it." In other words, listen to the founding fathers, not the current president.

They knew what to do with collaborationist whores like Melania in France after Liberation.

R96 Remember the Peter Principle: You rise to the level of your incompetence. General Mattis should have stayed retired as a USMC General and not been seduced to the spotlight again. Now he's trying to preserve his legacy just like all the other macho men Trump seduced with the promise of power.

Soldiers follow orders. They may not like him but he is the Commander in Chief. Unfortunately.

[quote] R93: But it really irritates me to see former Trump administration officials now come out against Trump. They may want to pretend differently, but they all knew exactly what kind of lowdown corrupt garbage Trump was before they took the jobs, yet they took them anyway and did everything in their power to protect him, as long as they were getting a paycheck.

I think these guys, like other elites, believe Trump’s con about being a successful businessman, and they have trouble believing he could be that successful and be as completely fucked-up as he is. They only mix with other bright, talented, and successful people, so they don’t know anyone like Donald. They think he’s acting for the public, but “like them” in private. Isn’t that what a Deplorables say? That he says what they think?

Then they find that he’s the stupidest and craziest person they could ever imagine, and they think that they’re needed to deflect his worst impulses, and that they just have to ignore and avoid him, until they can’t take it anymore or have a principled reason to quit. R94, I’m sure that they’re as mercantile as most people, but a lot of them are already rich and powerful. I think some of them take cabinet jobs so as to make a difference, as they see it, to improve government. (E.g., Bill Gates didn’t quit Microsoft to do charity work for the purpose of further enriching himself, right?) At least, I like to think that.

R103 God bless General Milley - the man has balls. And it looks like DOD Secty Esper is growing a pair. These two be gone before the weekend.

R106 Soldiers also take an oath to the constitution. See R103 above.

I wonder if all the Cabinet members had to also pledge loyalty to Trump to get their jobs? The oath that Trump tried to weasel out of Jim Comey?

I don't know, or much care about, Mattis' motivations. I do know that he has tremendous credibility and influence in the military. His forceful condemnation will enable military leaders to resist Trump's efforts to militarize the executive. I'm hoping the Mattis revelations keep coming.

[quote] Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska: “I thought General Mattis’ words were true, and honest, and necessary and overdue. And I have been struggling for the right words and I was encouraged a couple of nights ago when I was able to read what President Bush had written.”

R11 So in other words she can’t think for herself! Great quality in a senator! Fuck her!

Has Susan Collins chimed in about her concern?

I have it on good authority that her brow is deeply furrowed, R113.

John Kelly defends James Mattis: 'The president did not fire him'.

Kelly said that the president must have “clearly forgotten how it actually happened or is confused.” Kelly has also been critical of the president since leaving his post as chief of staff in 2018.

“The president tweeted a very positive tweet about Jim until he started to see on Fox News their interpretation of his [resignation] letter. Then he got nasty. Jim Mattis is an honorable man,” Kelly told the Post.

Mar 15, 2017

Did we ever find out what this was about?

[quote] Has Susan Collins chimed in about her concern?

She's very busy writing a very important letter to someone.

R116 Rumor at the time was that Comey briefed them on the Russia investigation but, as usual, they all claim confidentiality. It wasn't long after this that Jared's access to confidential reports was yanked. Trump made a big stink about it but the NSC held firm and Jared got knocked out of the loop.

Trump also tweeted that he gave Mattis the nickname Mad Dog. (Mattis got that name years ago by the press and he hated it.) Trump went on to tweet that before he nicknamed Mattis "Mad Dog" his nickname was "Chaos". "Chaos" was Mattis' radio call-sign in combat not a nickname. Trump is such a doof.

^^^meant for R115

Thanks, R118

[quote] Im placing holds on 2 Trump Admin noms until I get reasons 4firing 2 agency watchdogs as required by law Not 1st time ive raised alarm when admins flout IG protection law Obama did same& got same earfull from me All I want is a reason 4 firing these ppl CHECKS&BALANCES

Wow grassley starting to consider his legacy and (maybe) growing some balls. Imagine that.

[quote]Mattis did say this has been going on for 3 years.

R47 Mattis was there for the first 2 years and said nothing even though he took an oath to uphold the Constitution. Please don't make him a hero for speaking out now about Trump. Mattis may have been a hero on the battlefield but now he's just trying to preserve that legacy after serving this orange turd. Now there's all this talk about how much Mattis knew all along about Trump's incompetence and has confided this to his 'friends.' Apparently he doesn't feel he owes this country that same information.

I believe in redemption.

I believe on heads on pikes!

How do you do?

Any lawyers or English professors want to take on this rebuttal from Cheetolini's attorney?

Btw: the twitter account at R127 is a guy who posts the Tangerine Toddler verbatim...and then reports every time he gets flagged or suspended for violating TOS.

R7: Yeah me too. He put it a lot more succinctly but still it's good that Mattis is coming out against the Idiot in Chief now.

R128, that's brilliant.

Bump

So simple, so brutal

[quote]Wasn’t Mattis involved with the Theranos debacle? Gotta work the speaker circuit to gain back any $ he invested there.

R96 Mattis didn't invest any money in Theranos. He sat on the board and collected $100,000 a year for that privilege just like the other old farts (Henry Kissinger, George Schultz, etc) conned by Elizabeth Holmes. Mattis also used his influence to push the military to do 'field testing' of the Theranos scam. He did apologize later.

Jesus, those eyebags. Looks like he's smuggling cashews.

How come only former such and such people speak out? I'd like see more resignations. If they get that high up into the WH I don't think they'd have much difficulty finding another job.

[quote]How come only former such and such people speak out?

R135 A couple reasons: #1 They want to preserve their personal legacy. Most of these old timers had a mythology about them and thought they'd go out in a blaze of glory as an unselfish public servant working with the highest office in the nation. Oops, now they need to erase that portion of their history.

#2 The 'former such and such people' don't need another job so can say whatever the fuck they want. The only option for the younger ones is working for Fox News and Fox is overloaded with white commentators, male and female. There's only so many jobs to go around.

[quote] If they get that high up into the WH I don't think they'd have much difficulty finding another job.

Adding on to R136:

#3 Current players in the game didn't exactly get where they are honestly--and there are receipts.

I misspoke:

Change "didn't exactly get" to "may not have exactly gotten"