The resignation of U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis stands not only as a radical disassociation from the actions of the president he served, but as a foreboding for the future, a warning for 2019 — and beyond. And, for all the assurances that the world is getting better, such as Steven Pinker's "Enlightenment Now," there are huge geopolitical challenges to face and master to make that optimism real.
The key passages of Mattis' resignation letter include statements asserting that the United States cannot protect its interests or effectively serve its role as "the indispensable nation in the free world" without maintaining strong alliances and showing respect to its allies. "We must use all tools of American power to provide for the common defense, including providing effective leadership to our alliances," says Mattis. "It is clear that China and Russia ... want to shape a world consistent with their authoritarian model."
These are implicitly harsh criticisms of Donald Trump, a U.S. president who has denigrated and insulted allies as close as Canada, Britain and Germany, and deferred to Russian President Vladimir Putin, often treating him as a friend. More, Mattis' remarks are red flags signaling the prospective collapse of the institutions and common policies of democratic states — now in increasing peril.