Trump does the right thing
(I might change my mind, by the time I finish this) but I’m in total agreement with President Trump about one thing: Mark Esper is the perfect choice for U.S. Secretary of Defense.
Why?
He’s from Uniontown, of course.
I’ve rooted for his success since he was first designated the 23rd Secretary of the Army back in November of 2017.
Did I mention he’s from Uniontown?
Now, he’s become the Acting U.S. Secretary of Defense, with a good chance of becoming the 27th person to hold that post – and the second person from Uniontown to hold it.
George C. Marshall was Defense Secretary from September of 1950 until September of 1951.
There’s no guarantee Trump will give Esper the job permanently.
He’s made something of a practice of designating acting heads of departments, rather than giving them the jobs fulltime.
Currently, there are acting heads of the Department of Homeland Security, Interior Department, Federal Aviation Administration, Food and Drug Administration, Secret Service, Federal Emergency Management Agency and an acting Ambassador to the United Nations.
Plus, there’ve been many of Trump’s appointees who’ve quit or been fired because of a number of problems.
Esper, though, appears to have a clean slate.
The 1982 graduate of Laurel Highlands High School graduated from the U.S. Military Academy in 1986.
He holds a master’s degree from Harvard and a PhD. in philosophy from George Washington University.
He was also a decorated (Bronze Star) U.S. Army officer during the first Gulf War.
He hits all the marks that should qualify him to become an excellent cabinet member.
And oh, he’s from Uniontown.
I’ve decided to do a deep dive of his history, to ensure he’ll pass muster with his boss.
My search uncovered some mighty interesting information about Mr. Esper’s past.
There’s one “red flag” I did find.
He was pictured half-nude, wearing a party hat with a noisemaker, which could indicate he’s something of a “party animal.”
He was shown ushering in the New Year on December 31st, 1964 in the Morning Herald with the caption, in part, saying, “With a firm grip on a toothsome noisemaker Mark Esper of Uniontown gives the appearance of wishing everyone a Happy New Year.”
Of course, he was only eight months old at the time.
So, our future world leader made his first public appearance wearing diapers.
Yikes.
Mr. Esper appeared again in Uniontown’s newspapers in February of 1975.
He was pictured as one of the “American History Essay winners,” for his speech on “Patriot, Patrick Henry.”
Around that time, Esper was mentioned frequently for all manner of his athletic accomplishments.
(No wonder I saw him proudly standing beside the president during last year’s Army-Navy football game)
In 1972, he was mentioned as being on the swim team at YMCA; in 1975, “Mark Esper tagged a pair of three-baggers,” for the Braves of Uniontown’s 10-year-old Baseball League; in September of 1976, “Mark Esper excited the crowd with a 70-yard jaunt with an intercepted pass,” for Areford of the Laurel Highlands Midget Football League.
He was quite an athlete.
Online, I found a copy of the 1981 Laurel Highland High School yearbook – one year before Esper graduated in ’82.
I was surprised to discover that Esper had been a Mustangs basketball teammate of Gene “Cool” Steratore – the future longtime NFL and NCAA referee, who’s currently the official rules analyst for CBS during NFL games.
At the same time, Steratore’s classmate, Terry “Coach” Mulholland, was a future Major League pitcher who holds the distinction of being one of only a few pitchers to win games against every Major League team.
Mulholland pitched for 12 MLB teams, and, while pitching for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1990, he threw a no-hitter.
Also, one of Mark Esper’s classmates was Jack Marucci, who is the co-founder of Marucci bats – the leading bat-maker for Major League baseball.
Steratore, Mulholland, Marucci and Esper.
I’m a Uniontown Red Raider fan, but I’m still mighty proud of all of them.
Let’s hope Trump gives Esper the job.
Edward A. Owens is a multi-Emmy Award winner, former reporter, and anchor for Entertainment Tonight and 20-year TV news veteran. E-mail him at freedoms@bellatlantic.net.