Mattis quits as Trump yanks troops from Afghanistan, Syria

“You have the right to have a Secretary of Defense whose views are better aligned with yours.” No Images? Click here   By Paul Vale     Friday, December 21 MATTIS QUITS OVER DIFFERENCES WITH TRUMP Defense Secretary James Mattis resigned over differences with President Donald Trump on China and Russia, as well as his plan to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria and Afghanistan. “While the US remains the indispensable nation in the free world, we cannot protect our interests or serve that role effectively without maintaining strong alliances and showing respect to those allies,” Mattis wrote in his resignation letter. In a rare statement of Trump disapproval, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said he’s “distressed” over Mattis’ resignation. [HuffPost] [Tweet | Share on Facebook] U.S. BARRELS TOWARD HOLIDAY SHUTDOWN A government shutdown looms after Trump refused to sign a temporary spending bill that did not include funding for his promised border wall. The House then passed a bill that does include $5 billion in wall funding — but it has little to no chance of passing the Senate. Retiring Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) marveled at the chaos on Capitol Hill, saying: “You can’t make this stuff up.” [HuffPost] U.S. TROOPS TO BE WITHDRAWN FROM AFGHANISTAN A day after Trump announced American troops would exit Syria, officials revealed that he has also ordered the Pentagon to pull half the U.S. forces out of Afghanistan. [HuffPost] DEM LEADERSHIP KILLS GREEN COMMITTEE PUSH Democratic leaders tapped Rep. Kathy Castor (D-Fla.) to head a revived U.S. House panel on climate change — effectively ending a progressive push to establish a select committee on a Green New Deal. [HuffPost] FOX NEWS HOST SLAMS TRUMP OVER WALL Fox News panelist Lisa Kennedy Montgomery called out Trump for his suggestion that he’d circumvent Congress to build his border wall, saying people would be “up in arms” if the Obama administration tried the same thing. [HuffPost] REFUGEE ATTACKED IN PENNSYLVANIA SCHOOL Pennsylvania police are considering criminal charges after a Syrian Muslim refugee student was attacked in her high school’s bathroom. [HuffPost]         COPS SEIZE ‘EVIDENCE’ IN BERRETH CASE Colorado police conducted two more searches and seized potential evidence in the hunt for Kelsey Berreth, a flight instructor missing since Thanksgiving Day. [HuffPost] REFUGEE MOTHER HOLDS DYING CHILD A Yemeni mother finally got the chance this week to hold her terminally ill son after the Trump administration’s travel ban kept her out of the U.S. for months. [HuffPost] HEMP TO BE LEGAL NATIONWIDE The 2018 farm bill, signed into law, will officially make industrial hemp legal across all 50 states. [HuffPost] LONDON AIRPORT REOPENS AFTER DRONE CHAOS London’s Gatwick Airport restarted operations after a 32-hour shutdown due to repeated drone sightings. [HuffPost UK] CHIPOTLE HIT OVER WAGE THEFT Chipotle’s mandatory arbitration agreements are backfiring, with the company facing a flood of cases alleging wage theft. [HuffPost] CZECH MINERS KILLED IN EXPLOSION At least 13 miners have been killed and 10 more injured in a methane explosion at a Czech coal mine. [BBC]       Alexander Ludwig, Vanessa Hudgens, and Charles Melton are reportedly on board to join Will Smith and Martin Lawrence in Sony’s “Bad Boys 4 Life.” “Mary Poppins Returns” earned $4.8 million in North America on its first day of release. The “Men In Black International” trailer is finally here. Banksy sent a haunting environmental message with a new piece of holiday street art. Here are 12 last-minute beauty gifts you can buy at the drugstore. Rolling Stone looks at the fall and rise of M. Night Shyamalan. This is why being friends with your boss may cost you a holiday bonus. The Oregon Zoo is mourning the death of Eddie the otter, best known for his love of basketball. An online petition has been launched calling on The Walt Disney Co. to give up its trademark for “hakuna matata,” calling it “an assault on the Swahili people and Africa as a whole.” People with the healthiest personality type have these three qualities. Here are 23 funny holiday card photo outtakes. These Cole Haan ankle booties are 40 percent off right now. There was one scene Amber Heard really wishes hadn’t been cut from “Aquaman.” Blue Apron now has a Weight Watchers meal plan. Darren Criss says he won’t play queer characters anymore to make room for LGBTQ actors. Love this newsletter? Share it with a friend!      HuffPost is now a part of Oath and a part of Verizon. On May 25, 2018 we introduced a new Oath Privacy Policy which will explain how your data is used and shared. Learn More. Start your workday the right way with the news that matters most — all with a dash of signature Morning Email snark. Does somebody keep forwarding you this email? Get your own copy. It's free! 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