The resignation letter of General Jim Mattis will quickly become an important document in American history, and will be read by students around the world for years to come. This carefully thought out statement describes “the idea of America,” that Americans have shared since their country’s very beginning: No nation can go it alone for very long; every nation must respect and work with its allies and partners; foreign policies must identify threatening adversaries and call for appropriate actions; and basic human values are the bedrock of American exceptionalism.
Despite Trump’s “we won” pronouncement to justify pulling out of Syria, those who serve on the ground in the military know better. Actually, the autocrats in Russia, Iran, Turkey and China are the ones who won the day. Terrorists will likely take advantage of what looks like a U.S. government in turmoil. And our long-standing allies and partners already know that our collective security is very fragile.
Wall Street is also going crazy trying to process all this… the president’s continuing tariff wars, his affinity for autocrats and dictators, his endless White House scandals, his foundation forced to shut its doors, criminal investigations and indictments all around him, and now staging a government shutdown over a five billion-dollar border wall that the majority of Americans don’t support. We not only have a stock market problem… we have an economy that’s beginning to look unstable.
Except for a few self-serving talk show hosts, a handful of right-wing extremists in the House of Representatives, and family members who always had to do what daddy said, the president pretty much stands alone. “Only I can do it,” might be the most stupid remark ever uttered in a presidential campaign… except maybe for “the Mexicans will pay for it!”
Using “making good on campaign promises” as a reason to reject the advice of experts on life and death situations has no credibility, especially when uttered by someone who lies everyday about everything. What we have here is a bully who knows no other way.
Many of today’s wisest and most experienced thinkers are now concluding that this presidency (and possibly even the nation) is beginning to unravel. So, during this Christmas season I will be praying hard for “peace on earth and goodwill to humankind,” and maybe you should be doing the same.
Larry D. Lauer 
Frightening letter of resignation with broad implications. But an important example of effective communications skill. It is forcing many people to face the complexities of the US role in the world. Unfortunately Trump cannot understand complex concepts.