Commentary
John Bolton, who considers himself the authority on national security, came out with his op-ed forecasting former President Trump as a “danger to U.S. security,” just in time to be selected for my February Fool’s Day “honor.”
The op-ed, published in the Wall Street Journal, follows his Tuesday appearance on ABC News’ Good Morning America with its left-leaning host George Stephanopoulos, as he began his pitch for the new edition of his memoir decidedly designed to stop Trump’s return to the White House.
Claiming that a second Trump term would be worse, Bolton argued that the former president is “unfit” to be the nation’s commander.
In his writing and interviews, Bolton would have you believe that he is the expert in national security and that Trump has no interest in foreign policy, writing that “he (Trump) doesn’t do policymaking in a coherent sense. It will be another random walk for America and very, very dangerous.”
Those words triggered my memory of a blog piece I wrote on November 20, 2019, “Special: President Trump’s Foreign Policy Clear from Beginning.” In it I included a number of his foreign policy statements, but I have selected this from a November 3, 2015 Trump op-ed entitled, “Crippled America:”
“The career diplomats who got us into many foreign policy messes say I have no experience in foreign policy. They think that successful diplomacy requires years of experience and an understanding of all the nuances that have been carefully considered before reaching a decision.
“Look at the state of the world right now. It’s a terrible mess, and that’s putting it kindly. The so-called insiders within the Washington ruling class are people who got us into trouble. So why should we pay attention to them?”
Here are a few other Trump quotes:
“It’s time to shake the rust of America’s foreign policy.” – April 27, 2016
“The most important difference between our plan and that of our opponents is that our plan will put America First. Americanism, not globalism, will be our credo.” – July 22, 2016
“Washington flourished … politicians prospered … the establishment protected itself, but not the citizens of our country. That all changes starting right here, and right now.” – January 20, 2017, Inaugural Address
In an April 20, 2019 piece written by Michael Anton, he wrote, “He (Trump) has no inborn inclination to isolationism or interventionism, and he is not simply a dove or a hawk. His foreign policy doesn’t easily fit into any of these categories, though it draws from all of them.
“Yet Trump does have a consistent policy: A Trump Doctrine. The administration calls it ‘principled realism,” which isn’t bad, although the term hasn’t caught on.”
Now, Bolton is out with more rhetoric like we heard in 2015 when Trump was seeking the presidency. ‘He will abandon NATO,’ ‘We can expect World War III,’ and his remarks about Kim Jung Un would ‘cause North Korea to attack us.’
“Bolton’s recycled cries against Trump are as lame as a one-legged centipede,” commented fellow blogger Don Surber.
Bolton sees Trump as an isolationist, which should please those of us who are sick and tired of the globalism interests of Obama and Biden.
In his op-ed, Bolton rehashes all of Trump’s actions on the world scene, most of which draws Bolton’s disdain, his belief that “Americans will be less safe under Trump … alienating our allies, and cozying up to dictators.”
While he claims that Trump is “literally laughed at on the world stage,” it is Biden that has drawn the laughter.
“For someone who professes to have such great disdain for President Trump, ‘Book Deal Bolton’ sure has found a way to grift off the relationship.” – Jason Miller, Trump campaign
Much has been written about Trump’s poor first term cabinet and staff selections, however, I always owed that to his not being a Washington politician. I don’t know about the Bolton selection, but I do know Democrats hated him because he sided with the neocons who favored the extension of our military all over the world.
With Trump trying to extricate the U.S. from such military entanglements, Bolton reportedly left in a huff, and decided to write a “tell all” book that essentially views Trump’s foreign policy being non-existent.
Trump on NATO
Bolton insists that Trump “will act on his desire to withdraw from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization,” as what was thought he would do in his first term.
Reviewing Trump’s May 27, 2017, speech at NATO headquarters in Brussels, he said, “I have been very, very direct with Secretary Stoltenberg and members of the Alliance in saying that NATO members must finally contribute their fair share and meet their financial obligations,” as he referenced 23 of the 28 nations not paying what they are supposed to be paying for their defense. “This is not fair to the people and taxpayers of the United States.”
Two years later, all 28 member countries had increased their commitment, and 16 of them were on track to meet their goals by 2024.
Tell me, Mr. Bolton, would these countries have fallen in line if they didn’t respect Trump’s endeavor?
Care to draw a comparison to Biden’s foreign policy? I don’t think you want to go there. Think about his words from his inaugural address …”the world is watching today” … “We will repair our alliances and engage with the world once again.” … and “We will lead not merely by the example of our power but by the power of our example.”
He said, “This is a time for testing.” Yes, Mr. President … and you have failed.
May God continue to bless the United States of America.
