Those of us who are Vets know this all too well. As was evidenced in WWII, the troops respect a leader who will get in your face when you screw up. Especially one who has already done his three cups of coffee and a cigar or two and really doesn’t care if you like it or not. Actually, he is really afraid of only the ones who do like it.
Patton was such a model of what we almost have in Mattis. Seeing Trump yesterday address the MOAB authorization decisions made me almost swoon with joy knowing he is letting the Generals make the important combat decisions while just letting him know what they are doing.
It’s called delegation, and something that’s second nature to any seasoned executive. You hire good people, give them clear direction, and then get the hell out of the way and let them do their job.