Retired Adm. James Stavridis on Tuesday praised the leading candidate to serve as President-elect Donald Trump's secretary of defense, Gen. James Mattis (ret.), telling MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell that he is an "outstanding individual."
"Defense Secretary General James Mattis," Mitchell said to Stavridis, waiting for his thoughts on Trump's possible choice for Pentagon chief.
Stavridis only had good things to say about Mattis, noting he has known the retired general for years and would be an "excellent choice" for the position of secretary of defense.
"General Mattis is a contemporary of mine, someone I've known and admired for 10 to 15 years," Stavridis said. "We have worked closely together in the Pentagon, in NATO, and in Afghanistan. When I was the NATO commander, he was commander of the U.S. Central Command. He is a superb officer. He's very balanced, very intelligent, and well read–and an outstanding individual who understands combat operations."
"I think the question there is one of civilian control of the military, Stavridis continued. "There is a reason we have a prohibition of seven years from retirement to taking the secretary of defense job. He could get a waiver for that, that question will be raised. But on the merits of him and his talents, he would be an excellent choice."
Trump met with Mattis over the weekend and wrote on Twitter that the general left a very favorable impression.
General James "Mad Dog" Mattis, who is being considered for Secretary of Defense, was very impressive yesterday. A true General's General!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 20, 2016
Stavridis had been vetted by Hillary Clinton's campaign as an option to be her running mate during the presidential race.