Trump – of course – is in a snit. Mattis didn’t resign, Trump retroactively fired him after he said he was resigning! So there and ha!

I am pleased to announce that our very talented Deputy Secretary of Defense, Patrick Shanahan, will assume the title of Acting Secretary of Defense starting January 1, 2019. Patrick has a long list of accomplishments while serving as Deputy, & previously Boeing. He will be great!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 23, 2018

The Times reports:

Aides said that the president was furious that Mr. Mattis’s resignation letter — in which he rebuked the president’s rejection of international allies and his failure to check authoritarian governments — had led to days of

Now the White House press secretary has put out a statement with a new story about why Trump picked a fight with some football players.

(I know this is small potatoes compared to the boulder-size ones, but I’m morbidly fascinated by this kind of culture war bullshit.)

After extensive discussions with the Eagles organization, which began in February, the team accepted an invitation from the President to attend a June 5 celebration of their victory in Super Bowl LII at the White House.

On Thursday, May 31, the team notified the White House of 81 individuals, including players, coaches, management, and support personnel, who would attend the event.  On Friday, the Secret Service cleared them for participation.  These individuals, along