back in the day, we like rex, we like jim mattis, but we know the president listens to jim mattis. we know he knows what he's doing. now he is no longer there. please stay with me. i want to go to the pentagon now with more on the breaking news because we're learning about -- more about how this happened. mattis went to the white house this morning to discuss syria and he was livid. that's the word used. barbara starr is "outfront" from the pentagon. what more are you hearing about this, how he went to the meeting and obviously the letter was prepared, you know, to be used if he needed it. you're reporting he was livid. why? >> reporter: well, erin, what we know is that early this morning, about 7:30, the secretary here at the pentagon decided he needed to go to the white house later in the day. he had seen some reporting from turkey that the turks were, in fact, planning to move against the u.s. kurdish allies inside syria. this becomes the critical question, the critical red line, perhaps, for jim mattis, because by the president's decision to withdraw u.s. troops from syria, lea

jim mattis came to this point. saying i've carried the fight in every battle i've been in, but i can't do this in the name of our country. >> you describe a series of decisions on america's greatest national security threats. russia, syria, afghanistan, north korea. is the president fit to be commander in chief in your view? >> in my judgment, no. i expressed this view to begin with publicly. i did not support him for the president. i felt that by training and background and temperament, that he was not fit for the job, and everything i've seen to date, not everything, i give him credit when he's been right and i give him credit for taking on china on multiple issues. but when it comes to the national security and the way he's dealing with our allies and betraying our interests, then i say no. >> secretary cohen, thank you. i feel it in your voice, and you've done your time there, thank you for sharing that with us. >>> joining us now, we have retired rear admiral john kirby, who served as spokesman during the obam

howie: jim mattis served his country well. but as somebody who has held a cabinet-level post, is the press overplaying the importance of one secretary? >> they are. >> even though mattis played a vital role. >> they are. and you serve at the pleasure of the president. i remember making calls a couple of times. i get a call from the chief of staff. i say how unhappy is he? if he's really unhappy, i will go. donald trump is the center of conversation not just here in washington. he's the center of conversation all over the country. he leads every parade. there are conversations at thanksgiving dinner. people talk about having a no politics discussion zone. i have never seen anything like it. howie: when the president abruptly changed course, does that add to this sense that everything is about him? does he have some responsibility here even if the press is overdramatizing it for the sense that right now washington is rattled. bill: yes, of course he does. because that's the way he acts. he acts direct and forceful way. he doesn'

they say jim mattis was right. the decision to leave syria seems to be something not thought through and this is why mattis has resigned. in his letter, he did not specify that as the reason. they had been clashing over policy for a couple of years. the new york times is saying yes, the kurdish forces are the losers. vladimir putin is the winner here. another beneficiary is iran. the quote is that his assertion that the war against the islamic state group is over is absurd. there is a comment piece in the washington post, which has been published in the chicago tribune. enough is enough, we need to go into bipartisanship mode and find ways of dealing with trump. be broughtn should to testify and congress to explain, is he fit or not to deal with security issues. secondly, congress should assert its authority to wage war and denied trump the abilityty to launch unilateral strikes. thirdly, if there is a movement an impeachment motion, republicans must trump in -- must jump in and remove trump. the departure is a sho

is donald trump forcing jim mattis out? has he essentially fired him, or has jim mattis tonight fallen on his sword and said you've made these decisions. i cannot honorably stay on the job. that's the question, wolf. >> earlier he appears to have been humiliated by the president of the united states with the decision to withdraw the 2,000 u.s. troops from syria, plus us a correctly point out, i know jake tapper has been reporting the president seems to be on the verge of doing something similar withdrawing many of the 14,000 u.s. troops from afghanistan as well. we'll see what happens to those 5,000 troops in iraq. clear lit president is not happy having any of those troops in any of those countries. stand by for a moment. jim acosta is over at the white house. all of a sudden we get this tweet from the president, jim, that mattis is out. >> reporter: that's right, wolf, and somebody who is a very key part of the national security leadership of this administration, and as barbara was just saying a few moments ago, and i thi

is the country is less safe without jim mattis. why is that the case? >> well, i think dan coats' release, public release in which he characterized jim mattis as a national treasure kind of says it all. jim is unique. somebody will follow him, but i think it's going to be very difficult to replace him. the country has been blessed for two years to have him in that position. i found his letter stunning, but not surprising. i'm not an intimatet of his, but i knee from the get-go this wouldn't last and at some point because jim mattis is a very principled man, that he would have to leave. >> and i just had a republican congressman on, director, who said there are a lot of -- the good news is there are a lot of great generals, a lot of people who can serve and be a great secretary after mattis, and who should hold up the ideals and leadership qualities of mattis, but after reading mattis' resignation letter, i wonder who you see taking the jobs because whose views are going to more align with the president's who is akin to a mattis? >>

jim mattis is the military defense professional. he is a soldier widely respected within the pentagon and u.s. armed forces and a great voice of reason, sanity, common sense and experience within this administration. and so his decision to leave, whether he was forced to or decided he could no longer abide by what is happening in this administration, is a great loss for our country. and it should be seen as a very worrisome development that mr. trump continues to take these rather irresponsible, repulsive and reckless actions to the development of national security. jim mattis is somebody who we all in previous administrations have greatly admired and respected. and we're very glad he was at the helm of the u.s. military as secretary of defense. so his departure is something i think we all should be concerned about. >> i want to read you a statement that was put out by mitch mcconnell who as you know very rarely breaks with the president in public. and he said i was particularly distressed that he meaning mattis was resigning on key

without jim mattis? up next, markets are down in the government is about to be shut down, we talk to the head of the nfib about what that could mean for small businesses. that's coming up next. this is bloomberg. ♪ ♪ there's no place like home ♪ argh! i'm trying... ♪ yippiekiyay. ♪ mom. ♪ >> breaking news right now, justice ruth bader ginsburg has some cancerous nodules on her along's, she is having surgery sheemove two of mthem for broke -- justice ginsburg is now 85 years old, the oldest member appointed .y president justice ruth bader ginsburg being treated for cancerous nodules on her long. mitch mcconnell in the majority leader talking in the senate saying he supports a stopgap measure. let's listen now. >> proposals they have been happy to endorse in the past. the only thing that has really lens,d are the political way over way over the far left. begannot end the way we -- was another shutdown over the issue of illegal immigration. member this back remember this back in january? all of

jim mattis on the "today" show was our lead story. government shutdowns, people are like, it's just a constant state. >> it depends if it's over a week and it opens back up on a monday. but i think the problem here and the actual question is how do any of these people get out of this? just as a reminder, two weeks from now, nancy pelosi will be the speaker. the democrats will control the house. so how trump actually imagines his leverage going up when he's losing political power -- i mean hopefully they'll resolve it this weekend. >> let's unpack that for one second. the way this would normally go with be mitch mcconnell would go to paul ryan and say put the bill on the floor and we'll be done. in two weeks, they can't do that. >> accidentalexactly. >> it really is going to get worse before it gets better. i take your point, chuck, that the power of a shutdown -- >> i forgot there was one earlier this year. >> it was over a weekend. it opened up by monday. it's different when it's like two weeks. >> the 2013 shutdown, which was suppos

mast t jim mattis significantly. his code of ethics is you do not walk away from your friends on the battlefield. mattis tonight simply may have run out of runway room ahead of him that he felt he could use in dealing with the president. he had been sidelined. he had been -- his advice on these matters had been rejected clearly. and mattis had had a strategy that simply wasn't working. he was trying to keep a low public profile and never say anything that would be contradictory to the president of the united states. he knew that this would infuriate trump. he knows that president trump doesn't like to see other people out there in public speaking. that it is all reserved for the president. so mattis over the last two years had had a strategy. you don't see him on camera holding press conferences. he would come talk off camera to reporters. you don't see him out there that much. he's very measured. he tried very hard never to get crosswise with the president because of president trump's sensitivities. at the same time

what would jim mattis have been saying to the president, and why is he not listening? mr. cohen: i suspect that secretary mattis would say, mr. president, we have made tremendous gains against isis. we are not there yet. still0,000, perhaps even more, isis fighters. we leave, they will come back like weeds and spread their poison. we have got to stay until there was a political settlement. as negotiations are underway. we have just removed leverage. unless the president has commitment from russia and erdogan and assad, of all ople, to say that they have a political solution, where is our leverage on the way out i suspect discussing this with secretary mattis specificay, he would recommend, mr. president, let'nos not pullout we have this question of timing and the question of the process, whereby we consult with our allies and capitol hl friends and discuss this in a way that is responsible. it was done for a political reason. i think there's a lot ofad news this week and this is another attempt to t,ange the subjn my judgment. jane: getting to the point that he thinks heso

jim mattis had the goods. you have been talking to so many of these people and they are shaken and concerned about chaos, right? >> absolutely. from nato allies to middle east allies to neighbors of syria caught flat footed by this and compounding that is when they reached out to the people they could normally trust in the pentagon, the state department and intelligence agencies and said what is happening, what next? and they were told, well, we don't know, that's when the alarm really spread. so i've spoken to multiple diplomats who are concerned and watching closely to see who replaces mattis. one of the other things that i'm hearing confirming some reporting out there by the associated press is that this phone call that the president had with the turk ish president, that that was the pivotal moment that no one could anticipate. yes there had been friction with mattis but that mattis was prepared to stay until the end of the administration but it didn't feel like that this was worse right now than it had bee

he said, "general jim mattis will be retiring with distinction athe end of february can having served as secretary of defense for the past two." yea we are happy to have with us former secretary of defense willm cohen. takee. you for joining how big a loss to the will theration -- general mattis' departure? >> think a big loss. he helped them with nato and t but i don't know how many eithet insults or prons of advice secretary mattis could take. you may recall that when the entire national security apparatus of the unitestates said t russians attacked us and they deliberrfely try to ine and did interfere in the election system from the president said "i believe president pin" rather than the intelligence committee. enecretary mattis and others recommended not going forward in north korea until there was an ement on what each side meant by the terms, that was rejected. he was upset thapresident chose to send troops pending thanks giving to the border. i think it was just a straw too heavy for him to bear -- namely, to rejected the recommendation aboukeeping a sufficient force to really

virginia democratic senator tim kaine: >> jim mattis is one of finestnt public seri've worked with in my entire career. >> yang: senate majority leader mitch mcconnell said h "distressed" at the news. the mattis resignation letter was noteworthy for its absence of any praise for president trump. instead, he cited his differences with the commander- in-chief, writg, "you have the right to have a secretary whose views are better aligned with yours." >> we are going to appoint "mad dog" mattis as our secretarof defense. >> yang: the seeds of discord were present when mr. trump announced in 2016 that t retired four-star marine general would run the pentagon. mattis has made it known that he hates the nickname "mad dog." after that, he repeatedly disagreed publicly with the presidt, by supporting nato and other alliances, criticizing russian interference in u.s. elections, and opposing the president's withdrawal from th iran nuclear deal and ban on transgender individuals serving in the military. then came mr. trump's sudden decision this week to withdraw u.s. troops from syria, a move mat

jim mattis announcing formally he's stepping down in february. as i was just discussing with chuck todd, my colleague. this is about disagreements with the commander-in-chief, it is also early reporting suggests another ousting. trump also on the verge of personally unilaterally being the force that shuts down your united states government, heading into the holidays, for no apparent reason. again that is the clearest way we can put it. he wants a wall but refused to negotiate to get what chuck schumer offered. this hour we're expected to hear live from nancy pelosi and chuck schumer. they will be on "the beat." and how is this affecting your stock market. the stock market continuing to plunge among the shutdown threat. 500 points down. and also today, republican lawmakers, they've had it. they are blasting their president, donald trump, for many things, including siding with vladimir putin, instead of the own advice he got from his own pentagon advisers on syria. and then the story that we've been following because it matters in many ways, this j

>> jim mattis was a popular commander and secretary of defense. i think they will be dismayed to see he is leaving. i'm glad to see he was able to resign rather than be terminated by the president. at the same time i think the troops recognize that everybody retires at some point from the job. i think what they are more concerned about is who will be the next secretary of defense. >> we're talking about that in a bit. i really appreciate your perspective and analysis. resignation of jim mattis with the extraordinary rebuke to the president about his foreign policy. we're talking about who might be next. why social securiit's worrying allies and what, if anything, republicans in congress might do. that conversation is coming up. do that conversation is coming up if your moderate to severe ulcerative colitis or crohn's symptoms are holding you back, and your current treatment hasn't worked well enough it may be time for a change. ask your doctor about entyvio®, the only biologic developed and approved just for uc and crohn's. entyvio® works at the

>> i want to thank general jim mattis, think of his distinguished career. this is a man who has been serving his country since 1969 when he was 18 years old he signed up for the marines. he was in the first battle of falluja, so many of what has happened in the success of america in the last number of years he has been a part of. the success that he has had as secretary of defense as well. there's a difference of opinion going forward but he has served his country well and he has fans on all sides of the aisle. and he i have ever talked to that has been under his service has respect for him and i do as well, i want to thank you for his service. >> bret: are you concerned about the turnover in this administration? general flynn, general h.r. mcmaster, the cia director getting changed, two of them have left. are you concerned that this is a direct result from the presiden president? >> it is a natural after the first two years because these jobs are very trying on an individual. i've heard about general mattis thinking about leaving prior to this, i know deci

mattis or jim mattis-type figure. donald trump doesn't want that. they've reached the point we reach suggest donald trump and jim mattis concluded that donald trump no longer wants, has use for jim mattis or jim mattis-like arguments of the world view so right now, are we better off with maybe with the clarity that would come with donald trump appointing a donald trump defense secretary or is this advice that mitch mcconnell is giving, which i think trump is not following anyway. is that more useful? >> very plainly, jim mattis told the president a lot of things he didn't want to hear. i thought it was obvious that jim was pulling president trump in the right direction on a lot of issues. and i know from personal experience having worked with jim in the pentagon, he knows how to say no, you shouldn't do that. and the president -- it's difficult to get that kind of advice. very often you want to go in this direction. the people that work for you want to take new another direction. you have to listen, you have to unders

really didn't understand who jim mattis always has been. the red line for mattis was the decision to get out of syria because the u.s. had promised, he had promised kurdish forces there the u.s. would stay and help them. by leaving u.s. forces abandoning the kurds essentially and there's a good deal of concern they will face a bloodbath at the hands of isis and nearby turkish forces. that's what mattis could not live with, abandoning a friend on the battlefield. and that's why you're seeing some of the reaction across washington and world capitals about the resignation of jim mattis, and the latest person to weigh in is dan coats, the director of national intelligence. the top intelligence official in the united states. he issued a statement a short time ago and just one thing i want to share with everyone is the director says, and i quote, in every aspect, jim mattis is a national treasure. he will be sorely missed. i think there is an awful lot of people that feel that way. you know, mattis basically is saying that he can no longer serve

. >> yang:n australia, senator jim molan, a retired general who served alongside mattis in iraq, said it's ear australia must depend less on the united states and become more "self-reliant." in washington, the resignation rocked lawmakers in both parties. virginia democratic senator tim kaine: >> jim mattis is one of finest public servants i've worked with in my entire career. >> yang: senate majority leader mitch mcconnell said he was "distressed" at the news. the mattis resignation letterte was rthy for its absence of any praise for president trump. instead, he cited his differences with the commander- in-chief, writing, "you have the right to have a secretary whose views are better aligned with yours." >> we are going to appoint "mad dog" mattis as our secretary of defense. mr yang: the seeds of discord were present whe. trumpan nounced in 2016 that the retid four-star marine gener would run the pentagon. mattis has made it known that he hates the nickme "mad dog." after that, he repeatedly disagreed public with the president, by supporting nato ced other alliances, cricizing russi

, they are unnerved about the firing of jim mattis, the economy tanking. senators who might have been giving the president the benefit of the doubt while jim mattis was at the defense department and the economy was soaring, are having second thoughts about whether donald trump is the right person to be in the office. heather: are you saying this puts more fuel in the impeachment tank? >> the risks for the president go up. democrats don't need much more fuel in the impeachment tank. they will control the house. the possibility of impeachment is not hard to see that happening in the house. to be removed from office you need republican senators to vote on his removal. it seems unlikely, i still think it is unlikely. it is less unlikely now with the instability of the last week. >> does this put america and americans overseas at greater security risk? >> it does. we are seeing allies questioning whether america can be an ally and you see our enemies thinking america back down quickly. remember how this came about, removal from syria, troops in general mattis d

a number of us allies are unhappy with the move, and jim mattis resigned shortly after president trump announced the decision. mr trump has now tweeted that the withdrawal will be slow and highly co—ordinated. our correspondent chris buckler is in washington. will come onto the cereal withdrawal ina will come onto the cereal withdrawal in a moment but this replacement at the pentagon, the new secretary of defence, what do we know about him and where he stands on issues like the withdrawal of troops from syria? patrick sha na han is the withdrawal of troops from syria? patrick shanahan is a former boeing businessman so he is someone with a different background to james mattis, who was a general in the marine corps, and was called mad dog mattis at one stage. it will be a very different person taking this acting post. president trump hasn't said how long he will be acting for. we believe there will be some continuity because he has been working below continuity because he has been working beloinm mattis but you have the sense that president trump wa nts to have the sense that president

the surprise resignation by secretary jim mattis. the reaction just in. >>> a massive storm strikes just as millions of americans hit the road. rain, snow, flooding are likely to create some headaches for holiday travelers. here to track it all and the reason why the storm is hitting us right now is paul williams here, live, in living color. ♪ in living color >>> and it's the day candace has been waiting for, a show all about him. >> you are the best "world news now" anchor since tj holmes. >> sit back, as we say. bye, felicia. >> and see his greatest hits one more time, like this. ♪ la, la, la, la, la la, la, la, la, la. >> and when he did this. plus something kendis is not expecting. >> i'm moving to first class? >> it's friday morning, december 21st. from abc morning news, this is "world news now." >>> man, the deejay is on it this morning for the final show. paul williams is here. >> welcome, paul! yeah! >> we have an action-packed show. >> guys, the fun we're in for. >> the truth got out of the bag about where i'm heading wh

jim mattis announcing his resignation. this white house already fractured. a lot of top key cabinet posts even within the white house, positions that have not been filled. vacancies that need to be filled. how do you see mattis quitting affecting an already fractured white house staff? >> i think it just shakes it to its core. no one saw this coming. it scares a lot of people. this is the secretary of defense who was seen as a very stable influencer for the administration. >> often referred to as the only adult in the room. >> true. and when we talk about high level administration people leaving, we won't -- we'll have an acting or we have someone leaving, secretary of defense, an acting chief of staff and an acting attorney general, and we also have the former national security adviser just claimed -- >> is there any precedent for this? have we ever seen this before in any administration? >> no. >> have you ever heard of a white house two years into its administration -- >> this much changeover? >> there has never been a white house in this disarray whether

former ambassador jim coates saying that the experience that jim mattis has brought to the decision-makings is invaluable. his leadership of our military won the admiration of our country and allies. and now joining us is the chief international security and also william cohen who is former republican senator and house members as well going all of the way back, and admiral, let me say that you have posted your analysis on why jim mattis is resigning, and beyond syria, and the things that broke his back, but going all of the way back. why don't you fill us in. >> i have known general mattis for decades and jim knows him well. we worked together as a navy p captain, and before i say anything else, i want to nominate secretary cohen to come back as the new secretary of defense. and let me ask you a question, and knowing jim very well, i know that he has struggled from the beginning with some of the moral questions that he is seeing coming out of the white house, and he has to lead a force where you go to fort levin worth if you commit adultery and he has a president on record paying off a porn

so the president, after previously saying that jim mattis would leave the administration in february, today he accelerated that timeline via tweet. so the president says this. i am pleased to announce that our very talented deputy secretary of defense, patrick shanahan, will assume the title of acting defense secretary january 1st, 2019. patrick has a long list of accomplishmen accomplishmen accomplishments. previously at boeing, he will be great. the president saidutive at boei he's been with the president, mattis' resignation is seen as a complete rebuke of trump's view on his decision to withdraw troops from syria and his decision to order the pentagon to withdraw troops from afghanistan. but there is another dimension to this, too. because now we have an acting secretary of defense on top of having an acting attorney general, a chief of staff with an acting title, at some point we'll have an active interior secretary, we have an acting epa director. there are no deputies at the department of homeland security, at hud or the va. this is an incredibly vulnerable time for this admini

defense secretary jim mattis has resigned in protest of trump's policies. the government's on the verge of a shutdown after the president demands money for his border wall. and on wall street, the markets in chaos as stocks tank. market now facing the worst december since the '30s. and on top of the syria troop draw down, another one being considered, half the american force in afghanistan. former secretary of state john kerry will join us as "the 11th hour" gets underway on this thursday night. >>> well, good evening once again from our nbc news headquarters here in new york. this was day 700 of the trump administration, and here is what we are dealing with and covering tonight. put it this way. the usual order in our government is not in place tonight. the diligence that dictates the behavior of the white house in normal times is not in place. here is a loose tally of where we are. the president of the united states, under criminal investigation, his children facing possible legal jeopardy, is threatening to shutdown the federal government tomorrow at mid

. >>> general jim mattis will be retiring after having served. during his tenure, tremendous progress has been made. especially with regard to the purchase of new fighting quilt. general mattis was a great ally to me and heot.

i think this was building up in jim mattis' mind and his letter oozes integrity. he's nothing if not a man of integrity and i think it's a very important letter that will go down in the history of this nation as you mentioned earlier. our historian says this is the first time a secretary of defense has resigned? >> it's clear pulling out of syria was the final straw for general mattis. let me ask you about unintended consequences. the kurds said they would have to release 3200 isis prisoners, which would be devastating for region but also for europe. what is your reaction to this? >> there is a lot swirling around the whole syria situation, not the least of which is the brutal regime of bashar al assad and iran and russia which support him but also the potential for a return to instability in eastern syria and, in fact, western iraq so it is a very bitter pill to wallow to more or less abandon the kurds who have done most of the fig fighting against isil and all the unintended consequences, less humanitarian aid delivered, we'll feel the effects for quite some tim

coming up, jim mattis resigns. the sudden exit from the white house and what it may mean for foreign policy and the markets. this is bloomberg. ♪ david: citing differences with the president, james mattis announced his resignation from the cabinet yesterday. right toyou have the have a secretary of defense with use better aligned to yours, i believe it is right to step down for my position." eli, thank you for joining us on the phone. give us a sense of how important this is. is this more important than others? >> absolutely. what he is saying is not, i disagree with you on a policy like with the carter administration and the iran hostages. disagrees on fundamental values with the president. and is, respect for allies a resolute opposition to adversaries and a commitment to america being the anchor of the liberal international order. these used to be noncontroversial things in washington, whether democrat or republican president, you would generally agree on that. james mattis saying i do not share your views on

so jim mattis will complete his tenure at the end of the year, the president says. stepping in is the deputy defense secretary patrick shanahan who has been with the administration since april of 2017. at the time he was a boeing executive. and as the deputy defense secretary, he's taken the lead role, alex, in helping to create the space force. that would be the sixth branch of the military. it is the thing that always gets the most applause at the trump campaign rallies or the ones he held before the midterms. that is one way that shanahan got on president trump's radar. >> okay. we will talk more about this, but i do want to get to mick mulvaney saying there is an offer on the table with regard to the government shutdown. what do we know about that? >> reporter: he says the white house is coming down a bit, but he wants democrats to come up from the $1.6 billion that the senate has already locked in for border security. so here is mulvaney speaking on one of the sunday shows about that very fact. >> i think it is important that everyone understands the language t

jim mattis resigns in protest. your reaction to what has transpired. >> certainly i don't agree with that decision. there's also a process problem and in a way it may have actually contributed to the frustration that secretary mattis felt. normally when we are considering a big issue like this, there is the meaning of the entire agency recall the national security council. the deputy speaks first in all the principles and we bet all the options in terms of what the risks are, operationally and what political risk are. the intelligent agent to get to speak on what will happen in the event of a decision like this. what is the implication on our allies and how do we communicate all of that to them. that was not done. that's unfortunate. all of those principles did not have a discussion to layout the risk on this with the president of the united is present. i think you finance a new information out now is a result of this. maria: is that what happened in terms of him getting so upset about it? you read the letter that

fired jim mattis i gave him a second chance, some thought i shouldn't. actually, no, mr. president, everybody thought that was actually your best selection. donald trump went on to say i thought i should. interesting relationship. but i also gave all the resources that he never really had. allies are very important but not when they take advantage of you. the president wakes up at the white house this morning not traveling to mar-a-lago for the holidays as planned because of his government shutdown. that government shutdown he claimed he would take credit for

jim mattis is excellent. he's a wise sage -- >> they're all saying it. >> keeping donald trump from going off the rails. he's now resigning saying donald trump has gone off the rails so deeply that he cannot countenance being in the administration anymore. what do republicans in congress do. what does a branch of government meant to check an out of control president do when the person they said they trusted in the administration said you can no longer countenance being part of this? when do they -- we can talk all we want about how donald trump acts. but we know how he acts. he's acted this way the whole time. when do republicans in congress stand up and do their job? >> they went up to the white house today and came out having been fed this sandwich that they have to eat, and they just came out with this grin on their face like, oh, well, the president wants the wall. >> and they didn't have to do it. paul ryan, nothing to lose, he's got a few days left. >> yeah. >> he could have said -- >> they could have p

this followed a tweet the president sent that was highly critical of jim mattis. he said when president obama fired jim mattis i gave him a second chance. some thought i shouldn't. i thought i should. president trump did, in fact, let jim mattis go, it had to do with the fact that mattis had ruins on iran that were far more hawkish than those of president obama. ma 'tis' tenure ends at the end of the month. it was supposed to end sometime in february. stepping in is patrick shanahan, he was tapped by president trump in april 2017 to work in the administration as deputy sec def. he has a background in mechanical engineering, he was an executive at boeing before he joined the administration. since he has been part of the administration he has been the guy leading the charge to help create the space force which president trump wants to see as the next an newest military branch. that i'm told is how shanahan got on president trump's radar. >> geoff, hold on. let's talk about all of these departures. we will now have an acting secretary of defense, an acting attorney g

for example, jim mattis is concerned allies are not being kept on board, relationships are not being maintained in the way they should eat. he believes very strongly, but frankly there should bea strongly, but frankly there should be a global approach to tackling these issues, something he shared with brett mcgurk, who was the us special envoy to the global coalition to fight islamic state, who has also put forward his resignation, again criticising donald trump in saying that he does not believe in the policies president trump is pushing. —— and the same. at the moment we do not get the sense from the white house that they are prepared to back down on that sudden, surprising announcement from donald trump that he is going to pull us troops out of syria. there is concern in washington, and that includes among very senior republicans in congress. chris buckler in washington. president macron of france has said he regrets mr trump's decision to pull us troops out of syria, saying that an ally should be dependable. he's reported to have called mr trump last week warning him against

on the syria withdrawal and the public belittling of jim mattis. when you speak to folks, you know, i assume off the record, republican lawmakers, do they tell you that their support for the president is wavering, panic, et cetera? >> i think definitely they are more candid when they are not being quoted on the record. i think that's fair to say. but there definitely is a palpable concern. i mean, mitch mcconnell has talked about -- he has touted the economic successes of this administration, combined with the republican congress, talking about the tax law, talking about the roll back in regulations. but really, remember one of the biggest rifts between congressional republicans and this administration and that's been over the issue of trade, with every tariff that the president has threatened or leveled, you have seen this considerable pushback. perhaps not always accompanied by action, but considerable pushback from republicans on capitol hill saying they vehemently disagree with the protectionist trade policies from the administration, because t

. >> reporter: and now, just one day later, defense secretary jim mattis handing in his resignation. making clear he has deep disagreements with the commander in chief. in a letter to the president dated today, mattis writes, "we cannot protect our interests without maintaining strong alliances and showing respect to those allies." mattis adding, "we must be resolute and unambigious in our approach to those countries whose strategic interests are increasingly in tension with ours." he specifically cites china and russia, telling trump, "because you have the right to have a secretary of defense whose views are better aligned with yours on these and other subjects, i believe it is right for me to step down from my position." president trump has hinted he and mattis aren't always on the same page. >> i think he's sort of a democrat, if you want to know the truth. but general mattis is a good guy. we get along very well. he may leave, i mean, at some point, everybody leaves. >> reporter: tonight, the president tweeting, "a new secretary of defense will be named shortly. i greatly thank j

early exit of defense secretary jim mattis. he will be leaving president trump's white house at the end of this year. >> the news comes after mattis's resignation letter mentioned the importance of supporting n.a.t.o. allies. mattis planned to stay in his role until february when a defense minister's meeting was scheduled. now bipartisan concerns are growing about the future of american diplomacy. joining me now, professor at the university of denver, former u.s. ambassador to iraq, poland, macedonia. happy holidays to you, sir. let me begin with the president's tweet about jim mattis. he said i gave jim mattis a second chance but mattis's appointment was widely welcomed. talk about the long term consequences about the abrupt shift. what does it say to you that the president is able to -- completely let go at a moment's notice because he disagreed with him? >> it is hard to assess the president's interpersonal relations. he seems to love people until he doesn't or hate them until he doesn't. it is kind of hard to say. what is b

so, margaret, jim mattis is now being ordered out of his post. what happens next? >> well, this is going to be a huge consequence, one of the things that secretary mattis was doing was trying to figure out how to execute drawi ining troi troops, so it will be hugely nunsed by deputy step engine to the role. i argue it puts more power in terms of policy in the hands of the secretary of state. how it's managed and managed through with the allies really matters. and that was sort of the basis of what secretary mattis laid out as his grounds for resignation in the first place. though he said that he would be leaving in february. the president now saying you are out now, you cannot quit, i'm firing you. >> well, brett mcgurk was supposed to leave his job be in februaryand president trump tweeted, mcgurk, who i do not know, how do we understand thispresiden thispresident? >> pretty mcgurk is washington's leader of the anti--isis coalition. he has been knitting together the countries to fight isis. he is a president ial envoy. the president may not know who he is, he clai

i have got to ask you about jim mattis. i want to read part of the r resignation letter. my views and being clear-eyed about strategic competitors are strongly held. you have the right and on other subjects i believe it is the right time for me to step down from my position. that is a wow. it is not an ordinary resignation letter. maybe it's a lesson to those who are shaking their heads of why they can't seem to get jobs right away. >> it is not an ordinary moment here. james mattis's departure mark it is first time ever a defense secretary has resigned. rubio reacted to the letter. he tweeted it makes it abundantly clear we are headed towards a series of grave policy errors which will eng danger our nation and empower or adversaries. calling it a sad day for america because mattis was giving advice. i'm also struck by bob corker's comments. just over a year ago he said tillerson and mattis and kelly that helped separate our country from chaos. >> it will be ivanka, the president and steven miller. >> any chance the president could change his mind on pulling troops out of

defense secretary jim mattis has resigned over president donald trump's decision to withdraw u.s. troops from syria the four star marine general will leave in february after holding the job since trump took office reports indicate that not just decided to go after a last ditch attempt to persuade the president to reverse his decision on syria. u.s. secretary of defense james mattis has widely been viewed as a stabilizing force both within the unpredictable us government as well as internationally the four star marine general has been defense secretary since president donald trump took office but now he's on his way out the door the two reportedly clashed on several major policy issues trump surprise announcement to withdraw troops from syria appears to have taken their differences one step too far in his resignation letter mattis stressed the importance of the u.s. maintaining strong partnerships my views on treating allies with respect and also being clear eyed about both malign actors and strategic competitors are strongly held and informed by over four decades of immersion in t

just a short time ago, we learned of the bombshell resignation of defense secretary jim mattis. general mattis will leave in february. a major departure, and it comes just a day after president trump made that sudden announcement, ordering all u.s. troops to be withdrawn from syria, essentially saying the war against isis had been won. secretary mattis, a four-star marine general, the last of what the president called his generals, to remain in the administration. there were reports of tension between the defense secretary and the president for quite some time, those differences had become more apparent in recent weeks. the defense secretary who now in his resignation letter saying the president has a right to have a secretary of defense whose views are better aligned with his. abc's chief global affairs correspondent martha raddatz leading us off. >> reporter: the news tonight coming amid a growing backlash over president trump's decision to pull out of syria, and that video, where he said it was honoring american troops, including those who gave their lives. >> they're all com

nobody wants to see this gamesmanship go on. >> brennan: the resignation of jim mattis his letter cited concerns about the president's lack of respect for allies and lack of clarity regarding competitors like china and russia. he seemed to invoke a lot of principles that traditionally republicans do embrace. do you see this as a call to action for the party that he says the president doesn't believe in these things? >> i am deeply, deeply concerned and i oppose strongly the president's decision apparently to withdraw troops from syria, apparent decision that we're now going to be looking to withdraw troops from afghanistan. i think the president has done lot of very good things in rebuild our military, getting out of the iranian nuclear agreement, but these two decisions would be disastrous. they would really in many ways hand victories to our enemies, to iran, to isis in syria. the taliban, al qaeda and afghanistan, it's very dangerous path to go down and we shouldn't be going down it. we need to make sure that we keep our troops there in order to reprevent the establishment of safe ha

jim mattis had the latter in spades, an incredibly gifted guy. i would suggest jim mattis is the latter day version of george marshal. what you get in now secretary shanahan is somebody who has that management and leadership capability. we'll see what happens from here. the department of defense will be fine moving forward, it just is a very difficult step for him to take to try to follow and really try to replace jim mattis. >> susan, what's your take on the president's pick? is this someone who will be in lock-step with the president's world view? >> i guess the president hopes so. this is part of a pattern we have seen this year of president trump replacing those, especially on the national security and foreign policy side, who challenged him, with people who have been on notice from day one that that kind of offering your own opinion, disagreeing with the president is no longer welcome in the trump administration. to the extent that this is a more permanent solution, i think, you know, president trump is looking for yems, men, in th job. i fo

it comes days after his defence secretary, jim mattis, resigned in a dispute over the president's decision to pull us forces out of syria. you can reach me on twitter — i'm @ ben m bland. it may not have been a white christmas but it wasn't a particularly bright christmas either or many of us. this is how it looked on boxing day in the south—west of wales. a lot of crowd around and through the day ahead again it will be often cloudy. it should remain largely dry. we have high pressure still firmly in charged to the south. frontal systems dancing across the far north of the uk so a bit of patchy rain still clearing eastwards a cross bit of patchy rain still clearing eastwards across scotland but for many more, it a dry start and a relatively mild start although notice, something a little bit cooler showing up across the south of england and south wales. could be at touch of frost and that is because the skies have been clearing and after any early fog has cleared, across the southern counties of england and the south of wales, that is where we have a decent chance of seeing some sunshin

defense secretary jim mattis has resigned in protest of trump's policies. the government's on the verge os a shutdown after the president demands money for his border he wall. and on wall street, the markets in chaos as stocks tank. market now facing the worst december since the '30s. and on top of the syria troop draw-down, another one being considered, half the american force in afghanistan. former secretary of state john kerry will join us as "the 11th hour" gets underway on this thursday night. well, good evening once again from our nbc news headquarters here in new york. this was day 700 of the trump administration, and here is what we are dealing with and covering tonight. put it this way, the usual order in our government is not in it place tonight. the diligence that dictates the behavior of the white house in normal times is not in place. here is a loose tally of where we are.re the president of the united states, under criminal investigation, his children facing possible legal jeopardy, is threatening to shut down the federal government tomorrow a