. 24/7 Space News .
SUPERPOWERS
New chief of staff John Kelly a retired Marine general
by Staff Writers
Washington (AFP) July 28, 2017


John Kelly, US President Donald Trump's new chief of staff, is a retired Marine Corps general who had been serving as secretary of the immense Department of Homeland Security after 45 years in uniform.

Kelly, 67, has a reputation for straight talk and will need to bring all of his toughness and organizational talent to bear in his new job as he seeks to right a White House which has frequently given the appearance of being in disarray.

Trump, in a series of tweets announcing that he had named Kelly to replace Reince Priebus as chief of staff, described him as a "Great American and a Great Leader."

Kelly will go from leading the fight against Islamic extremists and illegal immigration to running a White House which has been plagued by political intrigue and under a cloud because of allegations of election collusion with Russia.

Priebus, a former chairman of the Republican Party, was removed as chief of staff just days after Trump ignored his wishes and named Wall Street financier Anthony Scaramucci to be the new White House communications director.

Kelly is one of a number of former generals chosen by Trump for high-ranking positions in his administration.

Kelly capped his military career as head of the US Southern Command, an assignment that immersed him in border security issues, migrant flows and counter-drug operations in the Caribbean and Central and South America.

That experience prepared him well to take charge of the Department of Homeland Security, a sprawling bureaucracy responsible for border protection and internal security.

Those functions made Kelly a pivotal figure in carrying out Trump's election promises to build a wall on the Mexican border, deport undocumented immigrants and tighten visa screening for potential extremists.

Trump was apparently impressed enough by the job Kelly had done so far to move him closer to the Oval Office.

"John has also done a spectacular job at Homeland Security," Trump said. "He has been a true star of my administration."

The blunt-talking Kelly is close to Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, also a retired Marine general. Kelly served as Mattis's top aide in the 2003 assault on Baghdad that crushed Saddam Hussein's army.

- Lost own son in Afghanistan -

He is also shaped by the experience of having his own son, also a Marine, die in battle. First Lieutenant Robert Michael Kelly was killed in action in Afghanistan in 2010.

A native of Boston, Kelly enlisted in the Marines when he was 20, spent two years in an infantry company, and then left to go to university.

After graduating he rejoined the Corps as a second lieutenant and rose steadily through a number of positions, including company and battalion commands.

In the late 1990s, he was the Marine Corps commandant's liaison to Congress, the first of two such stints that exposed him to political give-and-take between the military and legislators.

In 1999, he began a two-year stint as special assistant to the Supreme Allied Commander, Europe, in Mons, Belgium.

In 2002-2003, as a colonel and then brigadier general, Kelly returned to the 1st Marine Division, serving under then major general Mattis in the successful assault on Baghdad.

Five years later he was back in Iraq for the US occupation, holding two posts over the 2008-2011 period. He earned his fourth star when he was named to head the US Southern Command in 2012, a position he held until retiring in January 2016.

Besides contending with violent drug gangs operating across the region and deep inside the United States, Kelly also was responsible for the prison for war on terror detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia said Kelly was "well thought of and well liked" by both Democrats and Republicans in fiercely divided Washington.

Manchin was also asked in an interview on CNN if Kelly was the man to restore order to the White House.

"If a general can't do it I don't know who can," he said. "They're not going to put up with any nonsense."

SUPERPOWERS
Sri Lanka finalises $1.12 bn port deal with China
Colombo (AFP) July 25, 2017
Sri Lanka's government Tuesday approved the sale to China of a majority stake in a loss-making but strategically-sited deep sea port for more than a billion dollars, the ports minister said. The cabinet gave final approval to sell a 70 percent stake in Hambantota port for $1.12 billion to state-owned China Merchants Port Holdings, minister Mahinda Samarasinghe told reporters. The Chine ... read more

Related Links
Learn about the Superpowers of the 21st Century at SpaceWar.com
Learn about nuclear weapons doctrine and defense at SpaceWar.com


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

SUPERPOWERS
NASA Offers Space Station as Catalyst for Discovery in Washington

Astronauts grow cucumbers in space to help scientists understand root growth

ULA to launch Dream Chaser for cargo runs to ISS for Sierra Nevada

Space Tourist From Asian Country to Travel to ISS in 2019

SUPERPOWERS
ISRO Develops Ship-Based Antenna System to Track Satellite Launches

Elon Musk says successful maiden flight for Falcon Heavy unlikely

Russia to Supply Largest Ever Number of Space Rocket Engines to US This Year

Aerojet Rocketdyne tests Advanced Electric Propulsion System

SUPERPOWERS
For Moratorium on Sending Commands to Mars, Blame the Sun

Tributes to wetter times on Mars

Opportunity will spend three weeks at current location due to Solar Conjunction

Curiosity Mars Rover Begins Study of Ridge Destination

SUPERPOWERS
China develops sea launches to boost space commerce

Chinese satellite Zhongxing-9A enters preset orbit

Chinese Space Program: From Setback, to Manned Flights, to the Moon

Chinese Rocket Fizzles Out, Puts Other Launches on Hold

SUPERPOWERS
ASTROSCALE Raises a Total of $25 Million in Series C Led by Private Companies

LISA Pathfinder: bake, rattle and roll

Iridium Poised to Make Global Maritime Distress and Safety System History

Korean Aerospace offices raided in anti-corruption probe

SUPERPOWERS
Writing with the electron beam: Now in silver

Scientists announce the quest for high-index materials

A new synthesis route for alternative catalysts of noble metals

Synthetic materials systems that can "count" and sense their size

SUPERPOWERS
A New Search for Extrasolar Planets from the Arecibo Observatory

Gulf of Mexico tube worm is one of the longest-living animals in the world

Molecular Outflow Launched Beyond Disk Around Young Star

Eyes Wide Open for MASCARA Exoplanet Hunter

SUPERPOWERS
New Horizons Video Soars over Pluto's Majestic Mountains and Icy Plains

Juno spots Jupiter's Great Red Spot

New evidence in support of the Planet Nine hypothesis

NASA's New Horizons Team Strikes Gold in Argentina









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.