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There are still 33 days until the electoral body elects the new president of the United States. And 69 for the inauguration of Joe Biden, who is expected to have won the November 3 election.
In normal times, this is a peaceful transition phase, in which the old president’s team trains the new president’s team, even if it belongs to the other party. Republican George W. Bush left a handwritten letter to Democrat Barack Obama.
But in the days of Donald Trump, who refuses to acknowledge the result, these weeks seem endless. Your first actions do not suggest anything good.
On Monday, Trump fired Defense Secretary Mark Esper and appointed the former director of the National Counter-Terrorism Center, Christopher C. Miller, as the Pentagon’s incumbent chief.
The move had been expected for a while, in part because Esper had spoken out against the use of soldiers against protesters, as Trump publicly considered earlier this summer. Esper had repeatedly resisted dragging the military into a political trench warfare. On Tuesday, other Pentagon leaders were replaced by those loyal to Trump.
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Former chief of staff Jen Stewart and two other employees were laid off. Stewart is succeeded by Kash Patel, who once worked for Republican Rep. Devin Nunes and on the National Security Council in the White House. During the impeachment process against Trump, he was one of his most aggressive advocates.
Trump wants to withdraw US troops from Afghanistan
As Secretary of State for Political Affairs, Anthony Tata will lead the Ministry’s strategic planning in place of James Anderson. In the summer, the former brigadier general’s nomination as Secretary of State for Political Affairs at the Pentagon fell through because he had labeled Obama a terrorist and Muslim and spread other conspiracy theories.
He also appeared as a commentator on the conservative Fox News for a time. Joseph Kernan, Secretary of State for Intelligence, will be replaced by Ezra Cohen-Watnick, who was also a member of the National Security Council.
These changes at the Pentagon allow the incumbent to withdraw more troops, including from Afghanistan and Somalia, a promise he made to his voters in 2016. The Washington Post quoted a government official as saying that Trump is sticking to withdrawing troops around the world sooner. to leave office.
He sees the Ministry of Defense as the “head of the resistance movement against his agenda.” Other sources said the White House requested the personnel change and that it actually meant a takeover of the Pentagon by Trump’s National Security Council staff.
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Not only Democrats, but also some Republicans are concerned about this unusual rogue of transition staff. “You can hardly overestimate how dangerous this high-level move in the Defense Department is in the phase of a president change,” said Democratic Rep. Adam Smith, who heads the Defense Committee in the House of Representatives.
Security experts are concerned
Commenting on Esper’s firing, Republican Senator John Cornyn told CNN: “I don’t think that will do (Trump) anything. And I doubt it will help the country. ” Looking at CIA chief Gina Haspel, whose firing is as speculated as that of FBI chief Christopher Wray, Cornyn said as a precaution that she did a “fantastic job.”
Security experts are also concerned. Richard Fontaine, director of the think tank Center for a New American Security, told Tagesspiegel: “Replacing the Pentagon level of management in the transition phase will only make it more difficult to deal with international crises in the next two months. It creates unnecessary risks at a time that is already problematic. He was less concerned that countries like China or Russia could take advantage of the situation, even if they could, Fontaine said. “But bigger problems arise and the United States cannot respond to them effectively.”
Most likely, the back of the chair will continue. Because apparently Trump wants to do everything he can to make it as difficult as possible for his successor in the White House.
