POTUS TO PENTAGON: Defense Secretary James Mattis welcomes his commander in chief to the Pentagon this afternoon. The ostensible reason for the President Trump’s first visit is to preside over the ceremonial swearing-in of his new defense secretary before friends and family in the Pentagon’s Hall of Heroes, conveniently located near the Pentagon visitors entrance at the Metro stop. The 3:50 p.m. ceremony will be live-streamed at defense.gov.
But before the festivities, the president will huddle with Mattis and the Joint Chiefs in the secure E-Ring briefing room known as “The Tank.” The session was originally scheduled for just 30 minutes, but could go longer. Pentagon officials say this is not the forum in which the president will get any formal presentation of new military options. The New York Times reports the options may include “American artillery on the ground in Syria and Army attack helicopters to support an assault on the group’s capital, Raqqa.” Trump has given the Pentagon 30 days to come up with ways to hit the Islamic State harder, but for now, Pentagon spokesman Capt. Jeff Davis says Mattis is taking a slow approach to any policy changes and is in “full listening mode.” Briefing reporters yesterday, Davis said Mattis has not changed his views on torture in general, and waterboarding in specific. The question of torture didn’t come up in Mattis’ Senate confirmation hearing this month, but in a written response to the Armed Services Committee, Mattis said, “I fully support using the Army Field Manual as the single standard for all U.S. military interrogations.” The Army Field Manual does not permit waterboarding.
‘SNEAKY DIRTY RATS’: In an interview on Fox yesterday, Trump unleashed a string of epithets against the Islamic State terrorist group. “We have evil that lurks around the corner without the uniforms,” he told Sean Hannity. “Ours is harder because the people we’re going against they don’t wear uniforms. They’re sneaky, dirty rats and they blow people up in a shopping center and they blow people up in a church.”
HEAD-SCRATCHER ON SYRIA: Pentagon officials privately expressed consternation over the president’s stated goal to establish “safe areas” in Syria to protect civilians and stem the flow of refugees out of the country. Both Trump and Hillary Clinton expressed support for the idea in abstract during the campaign, but the general feeling at the Pentagon seems to be that if the idea was ever a good one, it’s now “OBE,” overtaken by events, and they’re not sure what Trump had in mind when he told ABC Wednesday night, “I’ll absolutely do safe zones in Syria for the people.” Said one military officer, “Maybe we’ll get a better idea when he comes over [today].” Officials point to several factors on the ground that have changed, including the defeat of rebels in Aleppo, the presence of Turkish troops in northern Syria, and the effective sealing of the Turkish and Jordanian borders ending the outpouring of refugees. “What are we going to do, put aircover over that? The Turks are already doing that. The Russians are there, so are we. What are we going to accomplish?” Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Joseph Dunford testified at length why he thinks a no-fly zone is a bad option, so this may be another area where Mattis’ influence on his boss may be tested.
TRUMP, MAY MEET: The president also meets today with British Prime Minister Theresa May, who outlined her vision of the “special relationship” between the U.S. and U.K in a speech yesterday before GOP lawmakers gathered in Philadelphia. She called the defense relationship “the broadest, deepest, and most advanced of any two countries,” underscoring the extent the U.S. and Britain share military hardware and expertise, including the U.K.’s investment in F-35 strike aircraft for its new aircraft carriers. “I look forward to pursuing talks with President Trump and his new administration about a new U.K.-U.S. free trade agreement in the coming months.” Trump, for his part, complained he will have to meet with May without the benefit of a confirmed commerce secretary. “I don’t have my commerce secretary — they want to talk trade. So, I’ll have to handle it myself [laughter]. Which is OK.”
May is the first foreign leader to meet with Trump since he was sworn in a week ago. In her speech, she also lent tacit support to Trump’s isolationist streak saying, “The days of Britain and America intervening in sovereign countries in an attempt to remake the world in our own image are over.” And on the eve of her visit, Britain’s Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said Syrian President Bashar Assad should be allowed to run for re-election, a dramatic reversal of British foreign policy.
PUTIN’S ON THE LINE: Tomorrow, Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin are finally expected to connect by phone, after days of back and forth over how and when the call would take place. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed the timing to Russian news agencies today. Peskov said Putin would again congratulate Trump and exchange views on the current state of U.S.-Russian relations, but he warned against expecting any big breakthroughs. “This is the first telephone contact since President Trump took office, so one should hardly expect that this phone call will involve substantive discussions across the whole range of issues. We’ll see, let’s be patient,” Peskov said, according to Reuters.
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Q4 EARNINGS WEEK (CONT’D): Northrop Grumman, which will build the Air Force’s new bomber, saw a 12 percent increase in sales during the fourth quarter of 2016 compared to the same time period last year. That contributed to a 4 percent increase in sales over the entire year, from $23.5 billion in 2015 to $24.5 billion in 2016. Net earnings in 2016 also increased 11 percent to $2.2 billion, up from $2 billion in 2015.
At Raytheon, the missile maker’s fourth quarter net sales dipped slightly, coming in at $6.2 billion, compared to $6.3 billion from the same time last year. For the year, net sales were $24.1 billion, up 3.5 percent from last year’s $23.2 billion. Earnings per share for the year were also up, coming in at $7.44, compared to $6.75 for 2015.
Defense News reports that the earnings came just as Raytheon and Italian firm Leonardo gave up their joint bid for the Air Force’s T-X trainer program. The companies were planning to offer the T-100 trainer for the competition. Italian sources said the deal fell apart because Leonardo couldn’t cut the price of the aircraft.
MCCAIN VS. MICK: Sen. John McCain says he’s “leaning against” approving Trump’s nominee for budget director. But if the Arizona Republican bucks his party’s president over the nomination and votes against Mick Mulvaney, it’d be a first in his career. During his 30 years in the Senate, five presidents from both parties have nominated 14 candidates to write the White House budget. McCain has never cast a vote against a single budget director.
But McCain is ready to break that streak. On MSNBC yesterday, McCain said he’s “very, very worried” Mulvaney will “continue his efforts to slash the military, which has been cut by 21 percent in the last eight years. I don’t think any of us believe that we’re 21 percent safer.”
BRAC TO THE FUTURE: The top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, Rep. Adam Smith, announced yesterday that he’s reintroducing a bill that would give the Pentagon the authority to close the bases it wants to in 2019. “We should not be wasting hard-earned taxpayer money to maintain excess infrastructure that DOD has determined it does not need,” Smith said in a statement.
RELATIONS SOUR WITH MEXICO: Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto canceled his meeting with Trump following the signing of executive actions related to border security, Sarah Westwood writes. Pena Nieto announced via social media on Thursday that he had informed the White House he would not visit Washington as scheduled. “This morning we informed the White House that I will not attend the scheduled work meeting for next Tuesday with @POTUS,” he tweeted in Spanish.
TRUMP GOES AFTER MANNING: Trump called former Army intelligence officer Chelsea Manning an “ungrateful TRAITOR” in an early morning tweet Thursday, and said Manning’s sentence never should have been commuted, Kyle Feldscher writes. “Ungrateful TRAITOR Chelsea Manning, who should never have been released from prison, is now calling President Obama a weak leader. Terrible!” Trump tweeted.
Obama commuted Manning’s sentence in one of his last acts in office last week. Manning had been sentenced to 35 years in prison for leaking thousands of Army documents on the Iraq war. In a column in The Guardian, Manning said Obama was too willing to compromise, and said an “unapologetic progressive leader” is needed.
CLOSER TO MIDNIGHT: The Doomsday Clock moved 30 seconds closer to midnight due to a year of cavalier talk about the use of nuclear weapons and inaction on climate change and other global threats. Rachel Bronson, executive director and publisher of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, announced Thursday that it is now two-and-a-half minutes to midnight. She said two factors played into the decision: loose talk about nuclear weapons and the continued discrediting of expert analysis. “There is a troubling propensity to discount or outright reject expert advice related to international security,” she said.
THE NAME GAME: News editors always face a conundrum about how to officially refer to any new top government official. Should we always use their given name, or the one they go by and prefer? There’s no consistent rule. During the administration of Bill Clinton, defense secretaries Bill Perry and Bill Cohen were referred to as William. During the Bush administration, Don Rumsfeld was Donald and Bob Gates was Robert. But under Obama, who once went by Barry, Charles Hagel was Chuck, and Ashton Carter, Ash. Now comes James Mattis, who told reporters during a surprise drop-in at a Pentagon press gaggle yesterday, “I go by Jim. I was born Jim, I am from the West, Jim is fine, OK? How’s that?” Everything else Mattis said during his brief 3-minute charm offensive was off the record. But he made a point of saying on the record that “Mad Dog” is not his preferred nom de guerre. “It’s you guys that came up with Mad Dog. My own troops were laughing about it, saying, ‘We know your call sign is Chaos, where did this come from?’ It must have been a slow news day, some newsperson made it up.” The James-to-Jim change has already been made at the leaders page on the Pentagon’s website, where Mattis is Jim, but not on his long-form bio, where he’s still listed as James. Now if I can just convince my editor of the wisdom of the old Jim Croce song, “You don’t mess around with Jim.”
THE RUNDOWN
Washington Post: Trump: Strong military matters more than balanced federal budget
Wall Street Journal: Military Brass Fill Donald Trump’s National Security Council
South China Morning Post: China ‘Steps Up Preparedness For Possible Military Conflict With U.S.’
NPR: The Shaky State Of The Islamic State
Defense One: The Price Of An F-35 Was Already Falling. Can Trump Drive It Lower?
CNN: Britain’s Navy Keeps Eye On Russia’s ‘Ship Of Shame’
Defense One: Exclusive: The Super Secure Presidential Phone (That Trump May Not Be Using)
Defense News: Northrop CEO Evades Questions on T-X Participation
UPI: U.S., U.K. to share assets to optimize P-8A patrol aircraft
USNI News: In Between Carriers, 11th MEU, Makin Island ARG Are Busy In 5th Fleet
UPI: U.S. Army tests Stryker with 30mm cannon
Military Times: Democrats demand Trump exempt VA from hiring freeze
Military Times: Defense Department Revamps Policy For Civilian Layoffs, But Says No Cuts Are Imminent
Military.com: Trial for PTSD Treatment with Ecstasy Ingredient to Open Soon
Navy Times: Green Cammies Are Coming To The Navy This Fall
Calendar
FRIDAY | JANUARY 27
12 p.m. 214 Massachusetts Ave. NE. Jay Solomon, author of The Iran Wars: Spy Games, Bank Battles, and the Secret Deals That Reshaped the Middle East, speaks at the Heritage Foundation. Heritage.org
3:50 p.m. Pentagon Hall of Heroes. President Trump administers a ceremonial swearing-in for Defense Secretary James Mattis.
MONDAY | JANUARY 30
10 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW. The Center for Strategic and International Studies releases a new study on international joint acquisition projects. csis.org
12 p.m. 1030 15th St. NW. Sen. Chris Murphy delivers the keynote address at an event looking at what implications the Iran nuclear deal has for the U.S. interests in the Middle East. atlanticcouncil.org
5:30 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW. Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright talks about America’s place in the world. csis.org
TUESDAY | JANUARY 31
10 a.m. Dirksen 419. Think tank experts testify about policy options to confront threats from North Korea. foreign.senate.gov
WEDNESDAY | FEBRUARY 1
10:00 a.m. Rayburn 2118. Retired Gen. David Petraeus testifies before the House Armed Services Committee about national security threats and challenges. armedservices.house.gov
10 a.m. Two subcommittees of the House Foreign Relations Committee hold a joint hearing on the impact of a free trade agreement between the U.S. and U.K. foreignaffairs.house.gov
11 a.m. 214 Massachusetts Ave. NE. Seth Jones discusses his new book, Waging Insurgent Warfare: Lessons from the Vietcong to the Islamic State. heritage.org
3:30 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW. Two panels discuss the future of nuclear deterrence and alliances. csis.org
FRIDAY | FEBRUARY 3
2:30 p.m. 1789 Massachusetts Ave. NW. Retired Gen. David Petraeus talks about the unsung heroes of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. aei.org
