E-Paper
Patrick Shanahan withdraws his candidacy to be Donald Trump’s defense secretary
Trump followed up the twitter announcement with another post in which he named Army secretary Mark Esper as the new acting defense secretary. There was no word yet on when a proper nominee will be named in place of Shanahan.
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced that his nominee for the post of defense secretary, Patrick Shanahan, the incumbent who has been holding the post in acting capacity since late 2018, has withdrawn his nomination for family reasons.
Trump followed up the twitter announcement with another post in which he named Army secretary Mark Esper as the new acting defense secretary. There was no word yet on when a proper nominee will be named in place of Shanahan.
New Delhi will be following these changes closely for signs of a possible impact on the upcoming second 2+2 ministerial of the defense and external affairs ministers of the two countries. Will there be a fully confirmed defense secretary in place for the meeting, which is scheduled for later in the year?
“Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan, who has done a wonderful job, has decided not to go forward with his confirmation process so that he can devote more time to his family,” Trump tweets.
He added, “I thank Pat for his outstanding service and will be naming Secretary of the Army, Mark Esper, to be the new Acting Secretary of Defense. I know Mark, and have no doubt he will do a fantastic job!”
Shanahan had held the position of acting defense secretary since the exit of James Mattis last fall over his differences with the president on Syria policy, specifically on the presence of US troops in the country to battle the Islamic State.
Shanahan, a former Boeing executive, was deputy secretary defense at the time. Trump moved into the top position, but in acting capacity, and was named as the full-fledged nominee for the top-level federal cabinet post in May. The White House had said, “Based upon his outstanding service to the country and his demonstrated ability to lead”.
The defense secretary position is important for its obvious relevance and implications for the country’s national security and foreign relations and India will be watching keenly who is named the next defense secretary and whether that person will be fully confirmed for the next 2+2, which is to be held in Washington DC later in the year.
The inaugural meeting of the 2+2 was postponed for the first time in 2018 — it was put off twice in all — after President Trump had abruptly fired then Secretary of State Rex Tillerson just days before the meeting then scheduled for July, and named Mike Pompeo to replace him.
The ministerial had to be postponed to allow for Pompeo to complete his confirmation process. The 2+2 finally took place in September.