President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary James Mattis during a cabinet meeting at the White House, March 13, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
Christopher Woody, Business Insider: How Jim Mattis defused a White House confrontation that left Reince Priebus saying 'WTF'
* Defense Secretary Jim Mattis' low profile belies the close relationship he has developed with President Donald Trump.
* Mattis has swayed numerous debates in the White House about defense issues.
* In many cases he has restrained Trump himself, prompting him toward some decisions while restraining him on others.
Defense Secretary Jim Mattis has become one of the most influential yet least visible decision-makers in the Trump administration, according to a Washington Post profile of the one-time Marine general's time as the head of the Pentagon.
One area where Mattis and his aides have had outsize influence was the debate over Trump's Afghanistan policy. Mattis' stabilizing influence came to fore in one contentious meeting about Afghanistan in the White House's Situation Room.
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WNU Editor: This is what Defense Secretary Jim Mattis is focused on right now .... Mattis: North Korea cannot drive wedge between the US and South Korea (CNN). More here .... Mattis: ‘Too early to tell’ if Olympics will lead to North Korea breakthrough (Defense News).
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