Shanahan pulls out of Pentagon job as
reports emerge of family violence
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[June 19, 2019]
By Phil Stewart and Steve Holland
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Acting Defense
Secretary Patrick Shanahan abandoned his quest for the top Pentagon job
on Tuesday as reports emerged of domestic violence in his family,
plunging the leadership of the U.S. military into new uncertainty just
as tensions with Iran are rising.
Shanahan said he made the decision, first announced by U.S. President
Donald Trump in a tweet, to prevent his three children from reliving "a
traumatic chapter in our family life."
"It is unfortunate that a painful and deeply personal family situation
from long ago is being dredged up," Shanahan, a former Boeing executive,
said in a statement.
Hours after naming Secretary of the Army Mark Esper to replace Shanahan
as acting secretary, Trump told reporters he would likely nominate the
former Raytheon executive and army veteran to the defense secretary
position. Esper will take over as acting secretary on Monday, the
Pentagon said.
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Shanahan, 56, was thrust into the role in an acting capacity in January,
after then Defense Secretary Jim Mattis abruptly resigned over policy
differences with Trump. His resignation marks the second abrupt
departure in less than six months at the Pentagon, a highly unusual
degree of turnover.
Shanahan had been due to go before U.S. senators for confirmation
hearings when the allegations of incidents of domestic violence surfaced
as part of FBI background checks.
USA Today reported that the FBI had been examining a nine-year-old
dispute involving Shanahan and his then-wife.
The newspaper reported that Shanahan said in a statement late on Monday
that he "never laid a hand on" his former wife. USA Today reported that
he and his wife both claimed they had been punched by the other and that
his wife was arrested after the incident but the charges were dropped.
The Washington Post also reported that Shanahan's teenage son allegedly
hit his mother with a baseball bat in 2011, when the Shanahans were
already living apart, leaving her unconscious in a pool of blood.
The Post said Shanahan had been responding to its questions about the
incidents since January. He told the paper he now believes he was wrong
to say in a memo to his ex-wife’s brother that his son had acted in
self-defense.
"Bad things can happen to good families . . . and this is a tragedy,
really," the paper quoted Shanahan as saying. He added the disclosure of
the incident would "ruin my son's life."
Shanahan's ex-wife and son could not be reached for comment.
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![](../images/061919pics/news_v33.jpg)
Acting U.S. Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan speak to the media
at the State Department in Washington, U.S., April 19, 2019.
REUTERS/Joshua Roberts/File Photo
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IRAN TENSIONS
Shanahan has been a prominent figure as tensions between the United
States and Iran have risen in recent weeks. It was Shanahan who
announced the deployment of about 1,000 more troops to the Middle
East on Monday, citing concerns about an Iranian threat.
Worries about a confrontation between the two countries have mounted
since attacks last week on two oil tankers near the Gulf. Washington
blamed long-time foe Iran for the incidents but Tehran denies
responsibility.
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said it was a bad time for
the United States not to have stable leadership at the Pentagon.
"This is a very difficult time, with everything going on in Iran and
with provocations and counteractions. And to have no Secretary of
Defense at this time? It's appalling, and it shows the chaos in this
administration," he told reporters.
The decision to stand down promises to prolong what has already been
the longest period without a confirmed defense secretary.
Shanahan was the longest official in history to serve as secretary
of defense in only an acting capacity, according to Pentagon
records. Part of the delay was due to Shanahan being under
investigation by the Pentagon inspector general for allegedly
seeking preferential treatment of Boeing while at the department. He
was cleared of wrongdoing in April.
Shanahan did not have prior experience in national security matters
before he was picked by Mattis to be his deputy.
A source familiar with the situation said Shanahan met Trump in the
Oval Office on Tuesday morning to say he wanted to step down. The
source, speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity, said the
decision was 100 percent Shanahan's.
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(Additional reporting by Makini Brice, Amanda Becker, Susan Cornwell
and Alex Dobuzinskis; Writing by Alistair Bell; Editing by Mary
Milliken, Nick Zieminski and Sonya Hepinstall)
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