Robert Harward reportedly turns down Trump's offer to become new national security adviser

Robert Harward, right.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Retired Vice Adm. Robert Harward has told President Trump he will not accept the position of national security adviser, the Financial Times and several other media outlets reported Thursday.

Harward was asked to replace Michael Flynn, the retired general who resigned Monday after it was reported that he had discussed sanctions with the Russian ambassador to the U.S., then lied about it, and that the White House was warned he could be subject to blackmail. Harward, a senior executive at Lockheed Martin, is close to Defense Secretary James Mattis, and a person with knowledge of Harward's discussions with Trump said he is "conflicted between the call of duty and the obvious dysfunctionality."

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.