Arizona’s Jon Kyl had briefly returned to the Senate to replace the late John McCain. | Zach Gibson/Getty Images Defense Trump struggles to replace Mattis as Pentagon chief Former GOP Sen. Jon Kyl is at least the second person to say he's not interested in the traditionally sought-after top Pentagon post.

President Donald Trump is having a tough time hiring a Pentagon chief after the abrupt departure of Defense Secretary Jim Mattis late last month.

Jon Kyl, the retired Arizona Republican senator, became the second person to wave off Trump’s overtures last week, telling the White House he is not interested in the job. Ret. Gen. Jack Keane also turned down the job shortly after Mattis’ resignation. (Keane, who frequently advises Trump, had refused the position once before, during the 2016 presidential transition.)


The refusals are particularly striking given that the top Pentagon job is historically among the Cabinet’s most prestigious and powerful, and coveted by national security veterans. But Mattis’ resignation — announced in a letter indicating that Trump had disregarded his advice on fundamental issues — has reinforced the image of a commander in chief unafraid to buck his top military advisers.

Both Kyl and Keane declined to comment.

Mattis’ deputy, Patrick Shanahan, took over for him on Jan. 1 in an acting capacity, and Trump has said the former Boeing executive could run the Pentagon “for a long time.” But the White House has quietly ramped up a search effort for a permanent replacement.

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Kyl, a longtime national security expert, served three terms in the Senate before retiring in 2012, and was appointed again briefly last year after the passing of Sen. John McCain. He helped guide Trump’s last Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, through his confirmation battle.

Mattis stepped down in late December, partly in protest over the president’s decision to pull American troops out of Syria but also, he wrote in a stinging public letter, because Trump does not share his views about the importance of American “alliances and partnerships” abroad.

Trump’s Syria withdrawal decision alienated not just Mattis but other top candidates for the job, some of whom have sharply criticized it in public — making it difficult for the White House to recruit a replacement.

“Syria withdrawal a strategic mistake. Bush won the war in Iraq w/ the Surge. Obama lost the peace by premature withdrawal. The result was ISIS,” Keane wrote on Twitter on December 19. “POTUS destroyed ISIS safe haven in Syria & will lose the peace by withdrawing.”

The White House did not respond to a request for comment.