Donald Trump Confirms James ‘Mad Dog’ Mattis as Secretary of Defense

President-elect Donald Trump confirmed earlier reports that he has tapped retired Marine Gen. James Mattis as his secretary of defense during his “Thank You Tour” event in Cincinnati, Ohio on Thursday night.

Pres-elect @realDonaldTrump: “We are going to appoint ‘Mad Dog’ Mattis as our Secretary of Defense.” #BREAKING pic.twitter.com/R3UYW8qNCQ

— Fox News (@FoxNews) December 2, 2016

“We aren’t announcing it until Monday, so don’t tell anybody,” the President-elect joked with the crowd. “Mad Dog. He’s great.”

Trump’s declaration confirmed reports from the Washington Post and CNN earlier on Thursday that Mattis would be named Trump’s secretary of defense.