Mattis Tapped As CENTCOM Head

Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced Thursday that he has selected General James Mattis to replace General David Petraeus as the head of U.S. Central Command, and characterized Mattis as one of the military’s most independent and iconoclastic leaders.

However, these attributes have gotten Mattis in trouble in the past. In 2005, Mattis remarked on-camera that it was “fun to shoot some people” in Afghanistan.

“You got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn’t wear a veil. You know, guys like that ain’t got no manhood left anyway,” Mattis said during a panel discussion in California. “It’s a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them. Actually, it’s a lot of fun to fight. You know, it’s a hell of a hoot. It’s fun to shoot some people. I’ll be right upfront with you, I like brawling.”

When reminded of Mattis’s remarks by a reporter, Gates responded that that the General was properly disciplined at the time and has corrected his behavior since the incident.

“That was five years ago,” said Gates. “I think the subsequent five years have demonstrated that the lesson was learned.”

Mattis, a Marine, is the current head of U.S. Joint Forces Command. He was initially intending to retire this year.

General Petraeus was unanimously confirmed by the Senate to command U.S. forces in Afghanistan last Wednesday. He replaced now-retired General Stanley McChrystal, who was relieved of his command after disparaging comments from he and his staff made it into an issue of Rolling Stone magazine.

Senate Armed Services Chairman Carl Levin’s (D-Mich.) office told Talk Radio News that the dates for Mattis’s confirmation hearings will not be announced until at least next week.