McMaster allies say Trump's 'generals' will hate working with John Bolton
![H.R. McMaster with Trump officials](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/VrW4zKC4xkyhdnCKHJACTc-415-80.jpg)
President Trump believes that with the hawkish John Bolton as his national security adviser, he'll finally have the foreign policy team he wants, sources close to Trump tell Axios. Trump abruptly named Bolton to the post on Thursday evening, replacing H.R. McMaster, a studious Army general who reportedly bored Trump and clashed with White House Chief of Staff John Kelly, Defense Secretary James Mattis, and outgoing Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. Kelly and Mattis had nothing to do with picking Bolton, Bolton's friends tell Axios.
McMaster has complained that Kelly, Mattis, and Tillerson treated him like a junior partner, McMaster allies tell Axios' Jonathan Swan, and one said: "One of the downsides of what happened is I only wish Tillerson was around to experience this. The two of them that wanted him out most — Mattis and Tillerson — I only wish they were both around to endure the pain of National Security Adviser Bolton. They hated him [McMaster] but they're going to like this a lot less."
Bolton allies see it the same way. "The short term is maybe they [Kelly and Mattis] think they got rid of H.R. McMaster," one Bolton confidante tells Swan. "The long term is you have a person beyond respected by the [House] Freedom Caucus, beyond respected by every foreign policy hawk that supports the president. He rightly views himself as a principal." A veteran of the George W. Bush White House and a protege of former Vice President Dick Cheney, Bolton knows his way around the bureaucracy, Axios says, and "Bolton's ideological foes fear him not only because of his hawkish ideas, but because he knows how to accomplish them." You can read more at Axios.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
![https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516-320-80.jpg)
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Why Roman epic Those About to Die has split the critics
Talking Point Sword and sandals miniseries starring Anthony Hopkins puts spectacle above story
By Irenie Forshaw, The Week UK Published
-
Why is China stockpiling resources?
The Explainer The superpower has been amassing huge reserves of commodities at great cost despite its economic downturn
By Richard Windsor, The Week UK Published
-
Paraguay's dangerous dalliance with cryptocurrency
Under The Radar Overheating Paraguayans are pushing back over power outages caused by illegal miners
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Menendez convicted of bribery, fraud, and extortion
Speed Read The New Jersey Democratic Senator was found guilty in a federal corruption trial
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Florida judge dismisses Trump documents case
Speed Read Judge Aileen Cannon ruled that special counsel Jack Smith was improperly appointed
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
How could J.D. Vance impact the special relationship?
Today's Big Question Trump's hawkish pick for VP said UK is the first 'truly Islamist country' with a nuclear weapon
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Hamas says military chief survived Israeli strike
Speed Read An Israeli bombing failed to hit its intended target, military commander Mohammed Deif, but killed at least 90 Palestinians
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Biden, Trump urge calm after assassination attempt
Speed Reads A 20-year-old gunman grazed Trump's ear and fatally shot a rally attendee on Saturday
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
First Israeli report on Oct. 7 finds 'severe mistakes and errors' in IDF response
Speed Reads Israeli military admits failures in response to deadly Hamas attack that triggered Gaza war
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Biden saw neurologist during physicals
Speed Read Following his bad debate performance, many are asking questions about the president's brain
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Russia bombs Kyiv children's hospital
Speed Reads The daytime barrage interrupted heart surgeries and killed at least 40 people
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published