In a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing Tuesday, Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., asked Army Secretary Mark Esper: Should he be confirmed as the next secretary of defense, would he align his foreign policy views more closely with former Defense Secretary James Mattis or President Trump ― as a rift between the two ultimately led to Mattis’s resignation late last year.

“I don’t know where to pick between the two,” Esper said. “But clearly, I share Secretary Mattis’s views, and I’ve expressed that publicly.”

The Pentagon has been without a full-fledged leader for more than seven months, since Mattis left the building citing disagreements over the importance of strong international alliances to U.S. national security.

“My views on treating allies with respect and also being clear-eyed about both malign actors and strategic competitors are strongly held and informed by over four decades of immersion in these issues,” Mattis wrote in his resignation letter.

Esper doubled down on those sentiments during the hearing, also echoing a willingness to resign that was laid down last week by Army Chief of Staff Mark Milley in his own confirmation hearing to become the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

“I’m fully committed to that,” Esper said of a diplomatic world order led by the U.S. “I think that is the one thing that’s certainly under threat, from Russia, and certainly China. I see the big picture, if you will.”

After Mattis’s exit, then-Deputy Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan stepped up into the acting role, and was nominated to replace him permanently. But that plan fell apart in late June, when Shanahan resigned after allegations of domestic abuse surfaced in documents from his 2011 divorce, and Esper spent three weeks as acting defense secretary in his place.

Committee chairman Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., had expressed a goal to hold a vote on Esper’s nomination Thursday, but that could be delayed to next week if any senators plan to vote against Esper.

“Most of us were very discouraged by the resignation of Secretary Mattis,” Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., said. “And what we’ve hoped for is a successor who can show the same level of candor, and principle, and a willingness to remain independent even in the most challenging of circumstances.”

Lawmakers talked up Esper’s vast experience, from serving as an infantry officer on active duty, then in the National Guard and Army Reserve, as well as in national security at a D.C. think tank, as an executive at defense contractor Raytheon, at the Pentagon and on Capitol Hill.

“If you are confirmed, you will help oversee national security policy for a president whose temperament and management skills are challenging, and likely very different from your own,” Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., told Esper. “While I may not agree with the president on many issues, I do want him to be surrounded by leaders who can give thoughtful advice and counsel.”

Esper leaned on the National Defense Strategy, the much-lauded, bipartisan policy put together under Mattis, in his response.

“The goal is to deter war, and this can only be done with a strong, modern, and ready military that has overmatch in all domains,” Esper said. “Our adversaries must see diplomacy as their best option because war with the United States will force them to bear enormous costs.”

But lawmakers also expressed concern about 14 top Pentagon jobs that are still without a confirmed official, including currently the secretary and deputy secretaries of defense.

“I’m concerned that the Defense Department may be adrift in a way I have not seen in my whole time on Capitol Hill,” Reed said. “It is my hope that you will work with the White House to impress upon them the importance of filling these positions.”

Esper has a track record of rooting out waste, starting with dozens of hours spent combing through every Army program with Milley last summer. They adjusted some acquisitions and canceled others, adding up with $25 billion in savings.

And at the unit level, Esper released more than a dozen memos reducing non-mandatory training requirements and other administrative tasks for Army leaders in the field, after years of complaints about their burden on readiness ― up to and including the legendary weekend safety brief, and doing away with glowing PT unless soldiers were running on busy roads or at night.

“The bottom line is this: in an era of mounting fiscal challenges and competing demands, we must actively seek ways to free up time, money, and manpower to invest back into our top priorities,” he said.

And he answered for past actions as Army secretary ― like giving up $1 billion set aside for Army personnel funding to support President Trump’s border wall project.

“I think in many ways, it’s just one of those things we do — whether it’s putting out wildfires in California, helping with hurricane recovery in Texas or Puerto Rico, flooding along the Mississippi,” he said. “It’s one of those things we provide to other parts of the government, to the American people.”

But Reed fired back, asking Esper to recognize the distinction between providing manpower support and shuffling around funds ― funds that the Army had pleaded to Congress would be necessary to grow and support the Army.

Looking ahead, Esper shared some of the plans in the works to address aggression from Iran. That includes Operation Sentinel, he said, which has already been briefed to the Senate Armed Service Committee.

“Whereby we do passive patrolling, if you will, in the Strait of Hormuz, Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf, to deter any provocative acts by the Iranians or the [Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps].”

Lawmakers challenged Esper to a host of other commitments, including:

• Addressing the toxic effects of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, formerly used in a firefighting foam on bases that has seeped into ground water around military installations.
• The Fairness for Veterans Act, a 2017 initiative to streamline discharge upgrades for service members with a post-traumatic stress diagnosis that could have resulted in misconduct that got them separated from the military.
• Reforming military housing, both in management and in physical condition. Esper began this effort as Army secretary, following widespread reports of dangerous and unhealthy conditions at on-base housing facilities, largely ignored by the private corporations who manage them.
• Extending his recusal from working on deals with Raytheon, his former employer ― as he had during his time as Army secretary. Esper said that he intends to stay within legal and policy ethics regulations if working with Raytheon. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., expressed concerns about corruption involving his relationship with Raytheon, and the possibility that he would return to a defense industry job following his time at the Pentagon.
• Sorting out what shape a Space Force, as a separate military service, will take.
• Making efforts to protect active duty service members and their families from being deported, as well as ensuring transitioning service members know how to apply for citizenship as veterans, if they have not already started the process.

“It’s obvious from listening to both sides of the aisle here, from my colleagues Sen. Kaine and also Chairman Inhofe, that based on their direct observation and work with you, both of them think you’re an all-star. I tend to agree …” Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., told Esper. ” … you’re going to need to be an all-star.”

Such is the case with the fine dining at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, according to a series of recent Facebook posts that shine a light on a bevy of the base’s delectable menu choices.

In an effort to ensure our servicemen and women know the best dishes to satisfy the insatiable palate that protecting freedom induces, we explored the most mouthwatering five-star dishes “The Deid” has to offer.

1. SNUG AS A BUG

You may have had cereal before, but you’ve never had bug-infused cereal. Sprinkle some of these lucky charms on your bowl for extra protein, succulent flavor and — one could argue — spiritual fulfillment.

Scott knows what we’re talking about. “Nom nom nom nom,” he says.

2. THE LUCK OF THE IRISH

What could possibly be more representative of the Emerald Isle than beef stew? Green beef stew, of course. In Al Udeid, every day is St. Patrick’s Day. One bite from this generous course will leave your taste buds screaming “céad míle fáilte in my mouth!”

3. MY SORTA AORTA

There is American roast beef and then there’s Al Udeid roast beef, the pinnacle of sustenance. Served with full blown veins and arteries, you might look at your plate and think, “That’s a f—ing heart, dude.” But rest assured, the only heart in the equation will be yours, which will be busy fluttering as the pungent aroma possesses your very being.

Scrumptious!

4. OCS

No, not Officer Candidate School, but Oatmeal Chicken Surprise, because why devour a bland old bowl of oats for breakfast when — boom! — you can be punched in the face with a poultry revelation?

5. SLIMY YET SATISFYING

For the more health-conscious service member, try this lighter option and say “hakuna matata” while you rid yourself of all worries — and every bite of grub.

6. THE ROCK OF AGES

Have you, like so many, been dying to change your look to resemble one of those diseased greyscale, rock people on “Game of Thrones”? What better way to achieve success in the endeavor than eating actual rocks? It might be a tad crunchy, so wash it down with your favorite Rip It.

7. THE GREEN MILE

For those needing something quick and on-the-go, grab a sandwich that not only satisfies the meat and bread portions of the food pyramid, but greens as well. The splashing of olive drab in sandwiches is reminiscent of the camouflage uniforms donned by the service members devouring them.

But seriously, this is probably not good.

Help us, Upton Sinclair. You’re our only hope.

In a statement, Pentagon spokeswoman Dana W. White indicated Sunday’s attack, which occurred around 9 a.m. local time about 200 miles southwest of Mogadishu, was undertaken as part of the Trump administration’s goal to “systematically dismantle” al-Shabaab. It came in direct response to recent attacks on local forces, she said.

Separately, U.S. officials described the target as a command and logistics node located within one of al-Shabaab’s strongholds where the group has “cemented its control” and established the means to shelter other unidentified “radical terrorists.” Speaking to The Associated Press, Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed said the operation occurred in Sakow, which is well inland and home to a terrorist training camp.

The Pentagon has come to view al-Shabaab with increasing concern, in large part because the group remains capable of carrying out deadly attacks on civilians and the alliance of African military forces fighting the group. Since late-2016, militants have overrun three bases in Somalia “by amassing large numbers of fighters and attacking in overwhelming numbers,” U.S. military officials said, growing its combat capability in the process by looting heavy weapons and small arms, armored vehicles and explosives.

U.S. officials won’t say precisely how many American troops are in Somalia now. The number is believed to be a few hundred.

But in a sign of how aggressively the U.S. military aims to address this threat, it recently dispatched a one-star Army general to coordinate the campaign there. Brig. Gen. Miguel A. Castellanos was hand selected by U.S. Africa Command chief Gen. Thomas Waldhauser “to help synchronize efforts between international military partners, pull various agencies together and develop momentum to change the dynamic of Somalia,” according to a news release announcing the shift. The Mogadishu Coordination Cell, as it’s called, is based at the city’s airport, it says.

And last month, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis signaled Washington’s willingness to consider deploying additional U.S. troops to Somalia should the troubled African nation seek greater military aid to combat al-Shabaab. At the time, no such request had been made by the Somali government, but Mattis’ openness about entertaining such a possibility highlights the Trump administration’s evolving perspective on how aggressively it should support indigenous forces willing to fight mutual adversaries.

The Pentagon’s strategy there, as with other regions where a lack of governance has allowed terror groups to take root, centers on training and advising — or “working by, with and through our allies,” as officials now characterize it. It also entails direct counter-terror assistance, a more-dangerous mission led by elite special operations forces. On May 5 it resulted in the first American combat deathin Somalia since the early 1990s.

Andrew deGrandpre is Military Times’ senior editor and Pentagon bureau chief. On Twitter: @adegrandpre

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Mattis addressed the Pentagon press corps to explain how the U.S.-led coalition has endeavored to meet President Donald Trump’s directive, issued at the beginning of his administration, to bring greater force to bear on ISIS in Syria and Iraq and, it is hoped, to disrupt the group’s ability to gain a foothold elsewhere. The secretary was flanked by his top general, Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Joseph Dunford, and the ISIS coalition’s presidential envoy, Brett McGurk.

The trio cited data points intended to showcase progress: more than 55 percent of ISIS territory has been retaken in Syria and Iraq; more than 4 million people have been liberated. “And not one inch of territory seized from ISIS has been recaptured by them,” they noted.

“Our strategic approach,” Dunford said, “is to cut the connectivity between ISIS affiliates and associates, … their illicit resources and their message. Our objective is to drive down ISIS’s capability to a point where local forces, with tailored support from the international community, are able to provide security. And we’re doing this today in Libya, Somalia and Syria, Yemen and Afghanistan.”

Yet despite their confident tone, some important questions remain.

It’s unclear, for instance, the extent to which U.S. troops will be needed long term. There are fewer than 10,000 Americans spread between Syria and Iraq, with thousands more deployed close by in Jordan and Kuwait. Mattis is said to be negotiating plans for leaving a residual force spread between various Iraqi military facilities, but he indicated Friday a desire to avoid an open-ended commitment in Syria where, combined with the Islamic State’s murderous tyranny, a ferocious civil war has displaced millions.

“I’m not willing to sign up for that. That’s not our intent,” Mattis replied when asked whether American personnel could remain in Syria indefinitely. “We’re there to drive ISIS to its knees. … There’s got to be a political solution to the larger issues there. It’s not going to be U.S. troops at the point of a gun making that happen.”

It’s also unclear when the group’s de facto capital in Raqqa might fall, an eagerly awaited development that would be seen as a symbolic victory for the coalition and a blow to ISIS given its ambition to establish a caliphate. Backed by U.S. military advisers and American firepower, thousands of Arab and Kurdish fighters have nearly encircled the city, but Mattis declined to offer an assessment beyond to say it will be difficult once local forces enter Raqqa, and that he intends to afford commanders the time they need to completely isolate those inside so they cannot flee.

“What will it look like when we say that we’ve got success?” Mattis said. “I think what we’ll see is the local security forces, police, that sort of organization that can handle it. … Police can’t handle a force that’s driving tanks and using artillery, or has thousands of fighters in mobile vehicles that allow them to range far and wide.”

And there’s also the matter of stabilizing these areas once ISIS is gone. Again, though, no easy answers.

Such planning is underway, McGurk said, but there is much that’s yet to be resolved. The focus, he said, is on low-cost, locally led projects that will enable displaced people to return home. Establishing local police forces will be an important piece of that, but so will restoring water and electricity.

“Stabilization is not nation building,” McGurk added, using a term that’s become synonymous with the mostly fruitless, years-long military occupations in Afghanistan and Iraq. “We’re not attempting to dictate political outcomes nor is it long-term reconstruction where projects are chosen by outsiders often with no connection to the local community, costing and often wasting billions of dollars.”

Like the Islamic State’s stronghold of Mosul in Iraq, Raqqa is heavily fortified and the coalition is bracing for a gritty, months-long fight through dense urban neighborhoods. After those cities are liberated, commanders will turn their attention to other areas where ISIS has amassed. In Syria, that includes a swath of territory stretching to the southeast from Deir el-Zour, through an open valley along the Euphrates River, to the Iraqi border town of al-Qaim.

Syria’s embattled president, Bashar al Assad, has indicated he intends to reassert government authority in that region, making the Russian military vitally important to ensure the anti-ISIS campaign can continue without interference, officials said. Russia and the U.S. have established deconfliction zones throughout the country. The phrase refers both to times and locations where both militaries agree not to impede one another’s objectives.

“We are looking for the Russians to work with the regime” as the U.S. and its allies begin to concentrate on ISIS territory in the mid-Euphrates valley, Dunford said. The chairman alluded to a plan that’s being co-developed among officials in Washington and Moscow to further “ensure that we can continue to take the campaign to ISIS and ensure the safety of our personnel.”

He declined to elaborate, but characterized Russians’ response as “enthusiastic.”

Another area of increasing concern is in southern Syria, where on Thursday the U.S. struck Assad loyalists as they advanced on an American training camp — apparently in defiance of Russian demands for them to stand down. Mattis said Friday that it appears these fighters were affiliated with Iran, which along with the militant group Hezbollah continues to back Assad in his conflict with an anti-government opposition. “I don’t know there were Iranians on the ground, but Iranian-directed forces,” he added.

“Iran’s activities [in Syria] have not been helpful. They’ve been hurtful,” said Mattis, a retired Marine Corps general whom many believe was forced out as the head of the U.S. Central Command because he objected to President Obama’s pursuit of a nuclear accord with Tehran. “They’ve extended a war that should have ended long ago.

“I’ve been in a lot of refugee camps over my years on active duty from — from the Dalmatian Coast to Africa and other places, seen boat people pulled out of the water off Vietnam. I have never seen refugees as traumatized as I’ve seen come out of Syria. Never. And Iran bears no little responsibility for that situation.”

Andrew deGrandpre is Military Times’ senior editor and Pentagon bureau chief. On Twitter:

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Thursday’s incident underscores, once again, the complex dynamic facing U.S. forces inside of war-torn Syria. It comes six weeks after President Donald Trump ordered a retaliatory attack on Assad’s military for its alleged use of chemical weapons against civilians. At the time, U.S. officials accused Russia of being complicit but have since begun to work more closely with Moscow hoping to establish areas that are protected from violence. For now, both sides appear to be taking that seriously.

“We are not increasing our role in the Syrian civil war, but we will defend our troops,” Defense Secretary Jim Mattis told reporters Thursday at the outset of a meeting with the Swedish defense minister.

This was despite #Russian attempts to dissuade pro-regime movement towards At Tanf, #Coalition aircraft show of force, & warning shots2/3

— Inherent Resolve (@CJTFOIR) May 18, 2017

There are believed to be approximately 900 American military personnel in Syria. Most are concentrated in the north, assisting local forces who are focused on liberating cities and towns occupied by the Islamic State. U.S. officials said Thursday that the Americans on the ground in At Tanf were training anti-ISIS units.

But some clandestine American units are training entities who oppose Assad as well, and it’s believed some of that work occurs in At Tanf. The border town is the site of significant activity dating back more than a year. Just last month, for instance, ISIS militants attacked a facility housing U.S. special operations forces as they trained opposition fighters. With the aid of airstrikes, the Americans repelled the attack, killing between 20 and 30 attackers.

Many analysts believe the town is a transfer station connecting the Syrian government with its supporters in Iran, Iraq and Lebanon, where Hezbollah is based. Linking the corridor would provide a stable land transit route to resupply the regime and bolster its proxies.

“The stated intent of that pro-regime convoy was to reopen the Damascus-Baghdad highway,” said Jennifer Cafarella, a Syria expert at the Institute for the Study of War. “I think [they] intended to test U.S. resolve and found it appropriately intact when it comes to force protection.”

Andrew deGrandpre is Military Times’ senior editor and Pentagon bureau chief. On Twitter:  @adegrandpre.  Shawn Snow is a staff writer and Military Times’ Early Bird editor. On Twitter:  @SnowSox184. 

Military families “who are used to the infusion of extra cash and benefits that go along with deployments, now will have to tailor their finances to a garrison environment. That may be a hard landing, especially since a lot of the money for family activities on post is going away,” said Petraeus, who has been in that position since it was created almost six years ago.  She spoke at a family forum at the Association of the United States Army Tuesday, featuring speakers highlighting some of the efforts to shore up military families’ financial well-being.

Petraeus announced she will be retiring in January. “It’s been a real joy and privilege to set up this office and see that it worked on behalf of all of you,” she said. 

The bureau, in addition to its regulatory work and its efforts to resolve consumer complaints, has also created two book-end programs for service members, aimed at helping them build financial knowledge at the beginning and end of their careers. An online financial education program helps new recruits in the delayed-entry program, before they get to boot camp, and before they get that first military paycheck. Since January, it’s been deployed by recruiters in the Army, Navy and Air Force, with the Coast Guard and National Guard coming on board soon, Petraeus said. Another project is free financial coaching to help a service member transition from military to civilian life, she said. More than 40 coaches, all certified through the Association of Financial Counseling and Planning Education, have counseled more than 30,000 veterans.

The bureau has investigated a number of complaints from service members, veterans and family members. Last year there were about 19,000 complaints from that entire community, with about half of them about debt collectors. She said collectors often go to great lengths, and in one case even were hounding a widow to pay them from her death gratuity after her service member was killed in combat. 

For full AUSA 2016 coverage:   www.defensenews.com/ausa

Defense and other officials highlighted other initiatives to help military families in various areas of their financial lives. Recognizing that military spouses make the transition from the military, too, defense officials will soon roll out a transition assistance program for them in early 2017, said Eddy Mentzer, program manager for the DoD Spouse Education and Career Opportunities program.

Just as the service members’ transition assistance program is focusing more on urging service members to start preparing earlier in the careers for the day when they will leave the military, this program will focus on young spouses in the early stages of their military life.

The program won’t reinvent the wheel of transition assistance, but will explain the elements of transition in language spouses understand, Mentzer said. It will cover topics ranging from employment and education to financial education and building support networks.

Another initiative is a research project evaluating the effects of states’ legislation regarding licensing and credentialing for military spouses who move frequently. A number of careers from nursing to teaching to hairdressing require licenses to practice in each state. To date, 49 states had adopted some legislation to address these issues for military spouses, and to mitigate the effects. 

Mentzer said researchers will evaluate the language of the laws in some of those states, and review how top agencies in the state are applying those laws. 

Military spouses are seeing the effects of some other DoD initiatives that have taken hold within the last decade. The DoD Military Spouse Employer Partnership has grown to 350 employer partners, and as of Oct. 3 had hired 99,646 spouses, Mentzer said.