McChrystal Slams Trump Over Mattis Resignation, Syria Withdrawal
Retired Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal said Sunday that the resignation of Defense Secretary Jim Mattis should give Americans pause about the direction of the nation under what he termed the "immoral" leadership of President Donald Trump.
"I don't think he tells the truth," McChrystal said in a blistering critique of Trump and the planned withdrawal of the estimated 2,000 U.S. troops in Syria in an interview that aired Sunday on ABC-TV's "This Week" program.
ABC co-anchor Martha Raddatz then asked "Is Trump immoral, in your view?" McChrystal replied: "I think he is."
McChrystal, who served as the head of the Joint Special Operations Command from 2003 to 2008 and took command of U.S. and coalition forces in Afghanistan in 2009, said he would not go so far as to tell Trump supporters that "they are wrong," but he made clear that they should question his leadership.
"What I would ask every American to do," he said, "is stand in front of that mirror and say, 'What are we about? Am I really willing to throw away or ignore some of the things that people do that are – are pretty unacceptable normally just because they accomplish certain other things that we might like?
"If we want to be governed by someone we wouldn't do a business deal with because their – their background is so shady, if we're willing to do that, then that's in conflict with who I think we are. And so I think it's necessary at those times to take a stand."
McChrystal's interview aired a day before Mattis' resignation will officially take effect at midnight Monday. Mattis' authorities will transition to Deputy Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan, a former Boeing executive, who has agreed to serve as acting Secretary until Trump settles on a permanent replacement.
In his stunning resignation letter, issued a day after Trump announced the Syria withdrawal via Twitter, Mattis said that national security interests were best served when the U.S. worked with allies and partnered local forces. He said Trump deserved a Defense Secretary whose views were more aligned with his own.
https://www.military.com/daily-news/2018/12/30/mcchrystal-slams-trump-over-mattis-resignation-syria-withdrawal.html