Trump picks hostage envoy Robert O'Brien as his next national security adviser

Robert C. OBrien.
(Image credit: Michael Campanella/Getty Images)

President Trump officially has his new national security adviser.

A week after announcing the exit of John Bolton, Trump said Wednesday his new national security adviser is Robert O'Brien, who currently serves as U.S. hostage envoy. Trump in July sent O'Brien to Sweden amid rapper A$AP Rocky's assault trial.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.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

In his tweet announcing the news, Trump said he has "worked long & hard with Robert," although The New York Times' Maggie Haberman reports Trump "didn't really know him" but "liked his portfolio." The Wall Street Journal previously reported that Trump "liked the look of" O'Brien, which the Journal wrote is a "key condition for many Trump appointments."

Trump himself, however, has downplayed the importance of the national security adviser job.

"It's a lot of fun to work with Donald Trump," Trump said last week. "And it's very easy, actually, to work with me. You know why it’s easy? Because I make all the decisions. They don't have to work."

Explore More
Brendan Morrow

Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.