This evening President Trump delivered remarks during the swearing-in ceremony for newly appointed Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper. [Video and Transcript] The Senate voted 90-to-8 easily confirming Secretary Esper.
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[Transcript] – THE PRESIDENT: Well, thank you very much everybody. We have a very important moment in our country’s history, actually. And we had a lot of our great Republican senators in the White House, and I invited them over and many of them wanted to be here. And as you probably heard, the vote just took place, and it was 90 to 8. That’s a vote that we’re not accustomed to, Mark, I have to say that. So congratulations, that’s great.
But I’m honored to be here today for the swearing-in of our new Secretary of Defense, Mark T. Esper. I especially want to thank Justice Samuel Alito — highly respected and a great gentleman, a great man — for joining us to administer the Oath of Office. Thank you very much. Thank you, Sam.
We’re also delighted to welcome several of Secretary Esper’s family members and friends to the White House today, including his mother, Polly. Hi, Polly. (Laughter.) Boy, are you proud of him, Polly? You better believe it. Yeah. (Laughter.) His wife, Leah. Thank you, Leah, very much. And his three children — Luke, John, and Kathryn. Thank you very much. Congratulations, too, most importantly. Congratulations. That’s an incredible thing.
There is no one more qualified to lead the Department of Defense than Mark Esper. A West Point graduate — great student, actually — Secretary Esper served our military for 21 years, including in the Gulf War. He also advanced U.S. national security in government and in private sector, most recently as Secretary of the Army, where he played a critical role training and equipping our armed forces. That’s where I got to know Mark. And there was nobody that did a better job than Mark and there’s nobody that loves it more than Mark. And thank you very much.
He is a recipient of the Bronze Star and Combat Infantryman Badge. He holds a doctorate in public policy from George Washington University and a master of public administration degree from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
I am confident that he will be an outstanding Secretary of Defense. I have absolutely no doubt about it. He is outstanding in every way. And we’re honored to have you aboard. And I would ask Justice Alito, please, to administer the Oath of Office. Thank you. Thank you, Judge.
(The oath is administered.) (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: Would you like to say something?
SECRETARY ESPER: Yes, sir, if I may.
THE PRESIDENT: Please.
SECRETARY ESPER: Well, thank you, Mr. President, for your kind words, for your confidence in me, and for this incredible opportunity. And thank you, Justice Alito, for administering the Oath of Office. I really appreciate you being here this afternoon.
I’d also like to Senate — to thank the Senate Armed Services Committee for its quick action on my nomination and for the strong bipartisan support that I received today from the entire United States Senate.
It is an honor of a lifetime to be appointed Secretary of Defense and to lead the greatest military in history. And I will do so with that same energy and commitment to duty, honor, and country that I have for nearly four decades since my early days at West Point.
Mr. President, it is a privilege for me and for my family to be here with you today. Thank you for your leadership and for your commitment to a strong national defense and to all of our service members. Our military has made tremendous gains in recent years thanks to your leadership and we stand ready today to take on any challenge.
And while our soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines stand guard each and every day, we will ensure their families are well taken care of.
On a personal note, I would like to thank my wife, Leah, who has been by my side now for 30 years as a military spouse herself; my children, Luke, John, and Kate; my mother, Polly; my in-laws, Tom and Von; and my sisters who join me here today. And everybody else who has been a steadfast supporter of me over the years.
Again, thank you, Mr. President, for allowing me to serve our great country once again, as Secretary of Defense. Thank you, sir. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, Mark. Congratulations.
SECRETARY ESPER: Thank you.
THE PRESIDENT: Fantastic. Proud of you. Come on over here.
SECRETARY ESPER: Okay. Leah?
(A certificate is presented.)
THE PRESIDENT: He’s going to be a great one. Thank you very much.
Great choice. Also, a classmate of Pompeo.
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90 to 8. The uniparty likes him, then.
Right?
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Really don’t know him but the vote numbers are troubling to me.
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sickconservative, It appears that vote has rankled most of us about this guy. TIme will tell, especially tomorrow when Mulehead spews his BS that has hopefully been neutered by AG Barr’s note to same. Hey, maybe Mule will lie in front of Congress. It’s the latest fad that gets no consequences although we deplorables would be jailed ASAP. Cold anger has now reached ICE-9 levels. Ref to Kurt V.
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Brought tears to my eyes 👀
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I like the cut of his jib…just something cool.
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Short and sweet speech. I like that and I believe he was a classmate of Sec. Pompeo who I admire. Other than that I’m optimistic as to how he may direct our military. I do have to laugh when the SC Judge Allito quotes “enemies, both foreign and domestic”. I think we need to reverse those terms as IMHO our biggest enemy lies within. Anyway, I hope SoD Esper supports VSJPDJT’s vision of peace through military strength.
Heck, this is why I’ve been following CTH just prior to the 2016 election, for Sundance’s introspect into who, what, why and sometimes how things are evolving, along with some excellent info from fellow treepers. I wish I would have been following during the Trayvon days, but I’ve done some poking around in the archives. Real journalists would learn plenty from Sundance and his Suspicious Cat team.
MAGA, KAG and TRUMP 2020!
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It’s unfortunate that a lopsided confirmation vote hits us as a bad thing. How much damage can a SoD do in a year and a half?
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What strikes me, other than an impeccable resume, is the picture of the husband and wife does not present the wealth laden accouterments that most high level bureaucrats possess before the position of Secretary of Defense is realized.
The cut of his jib and Mrs. show strivers that are not connected to the $$$ Billions of contracts that DoD represents.
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Steve Carell or a young Kevin Kline can play him in the movie… sorry, did I write that nonsense-fluff out loud? Needed a break from tomorrow’s Evil-Clown show.
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JC, Don’t we all. I for one will not be watching the SHITSHOW. It boils my blood that the HoReps are still playing this game, but that’s D.C. It needs to be cleansed, either by democratic means (hopeful but not realistic based on historical records) or other means (not hoping it comes to that but it would definitely do the job).
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😉
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SoD = SecDef
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Congratulations Mr Esper.
17 top positions in Defense have yet to be filled. Hope those senators at the swearing in ceremony get moving on the nominations aka do what we hired them to do.
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Relax, Trump’s got this.
If the new Defense Secretary is NOT a true patriot, Trump will ask him to resign and get another.
I am inclined to believe he is a team player.
God bless our President and this great country.
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President Trump is reliving what President Lincoln had to endure in finding leaders who could and would selflessly DELIVER.
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Saw a bit of his confirmation hearing, was impressed.
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A2, Thanks for that stark revelation that most of us don’t have a clue about. I have read that VSGPDJT has had a phenomenal number of judicial appointments confirmed. May this continue into other areas.
On a side note, is this a good sign that the Kenyan’s military spies have been ousted for these open positions? I know I’m going out on a limb but it is the Treehouse.
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Sec of Defense has some reading to do
Just in:
China’s National Defense in the New Era,” the white paper was released by the State Council Information Office, with a view to helping the international community better understand China’s national defense.
The main body of the white paper was divided into six sections: the international security situation, China’s defensive national defense policy in the new era, fulfilling the missions and tasks of China’s armed forces in the new era, reform in China’s national defense and armed forces, reasonable and appropriate defense expenditure, and actively contributing to building a community with a shared future for mankind.
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Very impressed…..
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👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
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I gotta’ be missing something obvious, please fill me in. A 90 – 8 vote seems like a landslide. Wasn’t Mr. Esper filling this position (interim) since Gen. Mattis left? What the hell has the Senate been doing that a ‘shoe in’ takes this long?
If our VSGPDJT could get a little support from the ‘right’ side of the aisle, he could move mountains.
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Mark Espe:r The Revolving Door Secretary of Raytheon.
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