Last Thursday, President Trump tweeted that Lt. General H.R. McMaster was out as his National Security Advisor and former United Nations ambassador and FOX News commentator was in.
I am pleased to announce that, effective 4/9/18, @AmbJohnBolton will be my new National Security Advisor. I am very thankful for the service of General H.R. McMaster who has done an outstanding job & will always remain my friend. There will be an official contact handover on 4/9.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 22, 2018
The White House said that McMaster would be requesting retirement from the U.S. Army effective this summer, adding that afterward he "will leave public service." President Trump reportedly thought McMaster's briefings came off as lectures and he was looking for someone who could keep him engaged with the discussion.
Bolton is one of the most hawkish and controversial figures in Republican foreign-policy circles. He was never confirmed as U.N. ambassador, serving seventeen months under a recess appointment before resigning.
While McMaster has served his country for over 33 years, Bolton went to Yale during the Vietnam War and avoided the draft by signing up for the Maryland Army National Guard upon graduation in 1970. In his Yale 25th reunion book, he wrote, "I confess I had no desire to die in a Southeast Asian rice paddy. I considered the war in Vietnam already lost."
What do you think? Was McMaster forced out for doing his job? Should Trump put more faith in his military leaders? Did the White House need another Ivy League talking head? Or should the President of the United States surround himself with advisors who give him the input he wants?
