The Atlantic

The Defense Department Is Leaderless Again

Patrick Shanahan withdrew from consideration to be secretary of defense after reports of a harrowing family situation.
Source: Manuel Balce Ceneta / AP

Patrick Shanahan spent an unprecedented five and a half months as acting defense secretary—only to be forced to withdraw from consideration for the post today, leaving the Department of Defense with yet another acting secretary at the helm.

During Shanahan’s , he had to manage a massive bureaucracy undergoing epochal change, while juggling responses to the world’s hot spots and responding to a mercurial boss.

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