CIA/DEFENSE/FOREIGN POLICY/JAMES MATTIS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/TRUMP PEOPLE: “Defense Secretary James Mattis is doing his best to downplay notions that he is concerned about working with President Donald Trump’s hawkish new national security adviser John Bolton despite signs of a shifting power dynamic at the highest levels of the administration and strong indications that the two men could clash over key issues like North Korea and Iran. One of Trump’s most trusted advisers, Mattis has clearly wielded significant influence since joining the administration and has demonstrated that recent staffing shakeups have done little to hurt his standing with the President. The weight of his opinion was again on display last week when Trump begrudgingly signed a $1.3 trillion spending bill after Mattis stressed it was a national security imperative. But the addition of Bolton, coupled with Trump’s nomination of another hawk in CIA director Mike Pompeo to replace ousted Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, represents a dramatic overhaul atop the administration’s national security team that many argue leaves Mattis more isolated than ever.”
–Zachary Cohen, “Surrounded by hawks, Mattis digs in amid Trump admin chaos,” CNN Politics, CNN.com, Mar. 28, 2018 1:49am