Carter: ‘Warlike’ John Bolton Is ‘A Disaster’ As National Security Adviser

Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

Former President Jimmy Carter said in an interview published Monday that John Bolton, the hawkish former U.N. ambassador President Donald Trump recently picked to be his next national security adviser, would be “a disaster for our country.”

In an interview with USA Today, Carter said he was “very must distressed,” at the news that current National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster would leave that role on April 9th. Trump announced the change in a tweet Thursday. 

“And particularly with the choice of his replacement,” Carter continued.

“I think John Bolton is a disaster for our country,” he said. “Maybe one of the worst mistakes that President Trump has made since he’s been in office is the employment of John Bolton, who has been advocating a war with North Korea for a long time and even promoting an attack on Iran, and who has been one of the leading figures on orchestrating the decision to invade Iraq.”

“So he’s a warlike figure and I’m just afraid that his influence on President Trump will be deleterious for our country.”

Asked by USA Today’s Washington bureau chief, Susan Page, what advice he’d have for Trump in his dealings with North Korea, Carter hammered the point home.

“You mean other than fire John Bolton?” he asked. “That would be my first advice.”

Carter separately told CBS’ Norah O’Donnell on Monday, in an interview set to air Tuesday, that Trump’s choice of Bolton as his top national security adviser “was very ill-advised.”

“I think John Bolton has been the worst mistake he’s made,” he said.

Latest Livewire

Notable Replies

  1. I agree with the peanut farmer 100%.

  2. Of course he’s a disaster. Everyone Trump has picked is a disaster.

  3. Avatar for daled daled says:

    Some day, President Carter will be afforded the respect he deserves as a decent man who had to work in an indecent town. And as a Former President, he’s been a rock star in walking his talk.

  4. OT

    First Kristol, now Ann? It’s a crazy fucking world.

  5. Coulter: “I guess if you want the guy to screw you repeatedly, etc, etc.”

    Umm, seems to me you supported him there, lady, and I use the term advisedly.

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

50 more replies

Participants

Avatar for daled Avatar for valgalky23 Avatar for lestatdelc Avatar for meri Avatar for cervantes Avatar for teenlaqueefa Avatar for irasdad Avatar for impurescience Avatar for bluinmaine Avatar for mcbain Avatar for drriddle Avatar for johncrandell Avatar for tena Avatar for jonney_5 Avatar for jenbieds Avatar for caltg Avatar for demyankee Avatar for machoneman Avatar for not_so_fluffy Avatar for cub_calloway Avatar for read2much Avatar for erik_t Avatar for justruss Avatar for kenga

Continue Discussion
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Deputy Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: