James “Mad Dog” Mattis is one of Trump’s all-star cabinet selections.
The Secretary of Defense put the plan into place that has crushed ISIS.
But he made one controversial statement that’s left jaws on the ground.
Conservatives were furious over the $1.3 trillion omnibus spending bill.
The swamp cornered President Trump and jammed him with legislation that funded Barack Obama’s domestic agenda while leaving out any funding for the border wall.
But Secretary of Defense Mattis pointed out that the bill secured funding to rebuild the military.
Trump did not like the bill and called it ridiculous, but signed the bill in large part because Mattis said a veto would hurt national security.
When Trump threatened to veto the bill, Mattis made the case that Trump should sign the bill because Obama had neglected the armed forces.
Breitbart reports:
“Rebeccah Heinrichs, senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, agreed. “If the secretary of Defense doesn’t advocate hard for the defense spending bill, it’s dead in the water.”
But the episode illustrated Mattis’ ability to walk Trump back from a veto threat, even on something that would be unpopular with his base.
“While the president seemed like he really didn’t want to sign the omnibus bill for a variety of reasons, I imagine Mattis made a strong argument for his Defense priorities in a way that resonated with Trump, and rebuilding the military is a real priority and a campaign promise of his.” Heinrichs said.”
Standing in front of the omnibus spending bill, Defense Secretary Mattis discussed the favorable expenditures that the massive spending bills entails for the military. President Trump reluctantly signed the bill in order to secure a necessary increase in military spending. pic.twitter.com/2WCADeTMTp
— FOX Business (@FoxBusiness) March 24, 2018
Conservatives trust Mattis to help Trump rebuild the military and deal with threats like North Korea and Iran.
And much of their anger about the spending bill was directed at Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell – the Republican leaders in Congress who did not lift a finger on behalf of the President’s domestic priorities.
Who do you blame for the omnibus spending bill disaster?
Let us know your thoughts in the comment section.
