General 'Mad Dog' Mattis Pledges Smooth Transition For Replacement Defense Secretary James Mattis said the transition to a new department head will go smoothly. “SecDef Mattis will work with Deputy [Patrick] Shanahan and department leadership to ensure the DOD remains focused on the defense of the nation during this transition," Dana White, the assistant to the Secretary of Defense for public affairs, wrote in a tweet. The statement came after President Donald Trump said that Mattis will leave his position on January 1, two months before he previously planned to depart, and that Shanahan, Mattis’s deputy, will serve as acting chief of the Pentagon. Mattis announced his resignation last week after Trump said he would withdraw American troops from Syria, ( Full story below ) https://www.newsmax.com/politics/mattis-trump-transition/2018/12/23/id/895635/ via @Newsmax