Trump’s Pentagon chief says he ‘cannot wait to leave’ his job
Christopher Miller also praised Russia for its success during Trump administration
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump’s acting Pentagon chief says he “cannot wait” to leave his job in less than a week.
Acting Secretary of Defence Christopher Miller made the surprising comments to press as he returned from a trip to Nebraska, Tennessee and Colorado.
Mr Miller, who has only been in the job for two months, spoke out when he was asked about the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the most expensive weapons system in history.
"I so... I mean, I cannot wait to leave this job, believe me,” he replied according to a Department of Defence transcript.
Mr Miller then appeared to disparage the $1 trillion fighter jet programme.
"Yesterday we were talking to some guy, some lieutenant colonel, or colonel, said 'what are you flying?' Said 'F-35,' I was like that's a piece of ... and he was like ... and he laughed, and I was like, ‘No seriously, tell me about it,’ he told reporters.
“I'm like, we have created a monster, but you know that.”
Mr Miller then went on to praise the success Russia has had during the Trump administration.
"I kind of, you know, like professionally I'm like, wow, they're doing pretty well, and they're using a lot of irregular warfare concepts, information, all this stuff, in a way that, you know, like ... good on them," he said.
A Pentagon official travelling with Mr Miller had to clarify his comments.
“The Secretary often uses casual and humorous language with reporters and personnel during travel. That characteristic does not convey well in a written transcript but was obvious to participants,” said the official.
Mr Miller got the job when the outgoing president fired Mark Esper on Twitter on 9 November.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments