Obama’s only Navy secretary pushed an agenda of social change. Now, he leaves with a warning.
By Dan Lamothe December 30 at 6:00 AM
Navy Secretary Ray Mabus takes his seat to testify on Feb. 2 at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on the implementation of the decision to open all ground combat units to women. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)
When Navy Secretary Ray Mabus vacates his job Jan. 20 as President-elect Donald Trump takes office, he can add another line to his resume: survivor.
The soft-spoken, silver-haired Mississippian is one of just a few senior civilian officials in national security to have stayed in government throughout President Obama’s eight years in office. Mabus, 68, was the president’s only Navy secretary, holding the position longer than any other leader since World War I while carving out a legacy of change that was appreciated by some and rebuked by others.
Mabus often said that he would keep his job as long as Obama would have him. He oversaw the Navy and Marine Corps through the end of U.S. military operations in Iraq, the surge of tens of thousands of U.S. troops in Afghanistan, and advocated significant cultural shifts like the 2011 end of the “don’t ask, don’t tell” ban on gay service members serving openly.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2016/12/30/the-legacy-of-navy-secretary-ray-mabus-change-and-mixed-feelings-about-it/?utm_term=.79a6b6edec5d
