President-elect Donald Trump formally announced Monday that he will nominate retired Marine Corps Gen. John Kelly to lead the Department of Homeland Security. Kelly served as commander of US Southern Command for more than three years until his retirement in January. “(Kelly) is the right person to spearhead the urgent mission of stopping illegal immigration and securing our borders, streamlining TSA, and improving coordination between our intelligence and law enforcement agencies,” Trump said in a statement announcing the appointment. If confirmed, he would serve as the fifth Secretary of Homeland Security, a cabinet position created by President George W. Bush after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. He would be the first retired general to serve in that post. Kelly is also the third former general to be chosen by Trump for a senior position in his administration. Retired Marine Corps Gen. and US Central Command chief James Mattis is Trump’s selection for Secretary of Defense, and retired Army Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, who served as the director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, is his pick for national security advisor.
Senior U.S. lawmakers expressed frustration that they are being cut out of some of the Trump administration’s most central decisions on military policy and spending. Their concerns, which are shared on both sides of the aisle, concern the budget reconciliation process as well as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s plans to slash…