Why General James Mattis Inspires Such Devotion In His Men

General James Mattis, who may well be Donald Trump’s pick as Defense Secretary, inspires absolute devotion in the men who have served under him. In a stirring tribute to Mattis titled “I Served With James Mattis. Here’s What I Learned From Him,” Stanton S. Coeer, who served under Mattis when he was a colonel, a major general, and a lieutenant general, illustrates exactly why Mattis evoked such zealous loyalty among his men.

Coeer commences, “Those of us who served with him know that he is a caring, erudite, warfighting general. We also know that there is a reason he uses the call-sign Chaos: he is a lifelong student of his profession, a devotee of maneuver warfare and Sun Tzu, the sort of guy who wants to win without fighting—to cause chaos among those he would oppose. To Marines, he is the finest of our tribal elders. The rest of the world, very soon, will know how truly gifted he is. Our friends and allies will be happy he is our new secretary of war; our enemies will soon wish he weren’t.”

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