Mattis withdraws nomination of Anne Patterson for No. 3 Pentagon job

US Defense Secretary James Mattis has withdrawn the nomination of former diplomat Anne Patterson for Undersecretary of Defense for Policy, the third-highest job in the Pentagon. The move came after the White House indicated it would not push for her confirmation in light of strong opposition in the Senate. Patterson, who served as ambassador to Cairo from 2011 to 2013, developed close ties with the Muslim Brotherhood and actively promoted the Obama administration’s policy to raise the brotherhood’s Mohammed Morsi to power.