One of the last decisions for the acting Defense Secretary was to hang up Jim Mattis' official portrait in the Pentagon

Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP

Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan.

• One of Patrick Shanahan's last acts as acting Defense Secretary was to authorize the hanging of an official portrait of his predecessor, retired Marine Gen. James Mattis, in the halls of the Pentagon on Friday.
• The portrait shows Mattis wearing a suit with a red tie that includes the delegates' signatures in the Constitution. Mattis is also shown wearing cufflinks emblazoned with the Marine Corps' eagle, globe, and anchor emblem.
• Shanahan received a standing ovation as he left the Pentagon on Friday, fist-bumping and shaking hands with employees.
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One of Patrick Shanahan's last acts as acting Defense Secretary was to authorize the hanging of an official portrait of his predecessor, retired Marine Gen. James Mattis, in the halls of the Pentagon on Friday.

The portrait shows Mattis wearing a suit with a red tie that includes the delegates' signatures in the Constitution. Mattis is also shown wearing cufflinks emblazoned with the Marine Corps' eagle, globe, and anchor emblem.

A vignette of Mattis' career was included with his portrait:

Mattis served nearly two years as the 26th Defense Secretary before stepping down, citing a difference of views with President Donald Trump.

"Because you have the right to have a Secretary of Defense whose views are better aligned with yours on these and other subjects, I believe it is right for me to step down from my position," Mattis said in his resignation letter in December.

Acting secretary Shanahan, a former Boeing executive, withdrew from consideration his expected nomination earlier this week, amid reports of a domestic violence dispute from 2010. He previously served as Mattis' deputy.

"It is unfortunate that a painful and deeply personal family situation from long ago is being dredged up," Shanahan said in a statement. "I believe my continuing in the confirmation process would force my three children to relive a traumatic chapter in our family's life and reopen wounds we have worked years to heal."

Shanahan received a standing ovation as he left the Pentagon on Friday, fist-bumping and shaking hands with employees.

Trump announced his intent to nominate Mark Esper, the current Army Secretary, as Shanahan's replacement (in the acting Secretary of Defense capacity). Esper previously served as a US Army infantry officer with the 101st Airborne Division and deployed during the Gulf War.