I've reported to Gen Mattis twice in my life. Once directly when he was a lieutenant colonel, and then indirectly as a LtGen. He is the most amazing military officer I ever encountered, and I encountered quite a few in three decades of service.
When I heard it reported on FNC that he was a front-runner for SecDef, I literally broke down and cried. The enormity of that news was just overwhelming. The message it sends to the troops is incalculable. That appointment alone told me what Trump is all about, and I could not have been happier. I have sat on the sideline for the past 10 years and helplessly watched the military I knew melt away. Nothing good happened in the military during the obama years. Nothing. As a result, this country is as much at risk as it has ever been. I had serious fears for us under a clinton administration and may well have become an ex-pat. My wife has been pushing for years to GTFO, but I felt that I would rather die on the soil I defended than not. I finally have hope, and even though I am agnostic, I pray that my country can right itself.
Fingers crossed, hoping our system doesn't **** this up.
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