Yet the Draft Dodgin Donnie said:“During Jim’s tenure, tremendous progress has been made, especially with respect to the purchase of new fighting equipment,” Trump said, adding that Mattis “was a great help to me in getting allies and other countries to pay their share of military obligations.”

Trump said he would name a replacement for Mattis soon, but did not offer a timetable.

In his resignation letter, Mattis, a former four-star Marine general, appeared to point to his policy differences with Trump, who has frequently clashed with U.S. allies.

“We must do everything we can to advance an international order that is most conducive to our security, prosperity and values and we are strengthened in this effort by solidarity of our alliances,” Mattis wrote in the letter.

“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."

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/read-ja...ion-letter