'Mad Dog' Mattis CENTCOM confirmation hearing today
Published: July 27, 2010
Since Marine Corps General James Mattis got the nod from Defense Secretary Robert Gates to postpone his retirement and take over Central Command, a few reporters pointed out that Mattis is a highly-respected military leader with a history of verbal gaffes.
Thought bubble: Isn’t that how we got here in the first place?
“It’s fun to shoot some people,” said “Mad Dog” Mattis, back in 2005. (Click for video.)
Well, barring any (more) eyebrow-raisers, Mattis should sail through a Senate confirmation hearing today. (Click to watch.)
How tough will the session be? It starts at 3pm, which doesn’t leave much time for a whole lot of grilling. Consider that Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan sat through two days of speeches and questions from Senators.
One thought: In January, does Mattis call Gen. David Petraeus into the CENTCOM conference room for a six-month performance review?
Mattis' most recent post was commander of Joint Forces Command. Iraq war commander Gen. Ray Odierno is already in line to finally return stateside and take over that post, soon.
Here's the Mattis bio: http://www.jfcom.mil/about/mattis.htm
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