John Bolton replaces H.R. McMaster as Donald Trump’s national security adviser

THE man who has just been named as Trump’s new National Security Adviser was once dismissed for his signature moustache and reputation, reports claim.

THE man who has just been named as President Trump’s National Security Adviser was once passed over for the job because of his moustache and reputation.

That’s according to Michael Wolff’s tell-all tale of White House intrigue, Fire and Fury, which claims President Trump passed on selecting John Bolton for the role because of his distinctive moustache.

Mr Bolton was suggested for the role by Roger Ailes, the ex-chairman of Fox News during the transition period, but was dismissed by Steve Bannon, who has also since departed his role in the administration.

“Bolton’s moustache is a problem. Trump doesn’t think he looks the part,” Bannon reportedly said. “You know Bolton is an acquired taste.”

The book quotes Mr Ailes as saying Mr Bolton was a “bomb thrower. And a strange little f***er,” Ailes reportedly said. “But you need him. Who else is good on Israel? [Michael] Flynn is a little nutty on Iran. [Rex] Tillerson just knows oil.”

Mr Ailes is also quoted as saying “[Bolton] got in trouble because he got in a fight in a hotel one night and chased some woman.”

“If I told Trump that, he might have the job,” Bannon replied.

The former diplomat who served under George W Bush even took to Twitter at the time to assure people his moustache would not be going anywhere.

I appreciate the grooming advice from the totally unbiased mainstream media, but I will not be shaving my #mustache.

— John Bolton (@AmbJohnBolton) December 22, 2016

Former U.S. Ambassador to the UN John Bolton is replacing National security adviser H.R. McMaster. Picture: Alex Brandon/AP

Mr Bolton is a foreign policy “hawk” who has advocated using military force against Iran and North Korea and taken a hard line against Russia.

The 69-year-old has long been a polarising figure in Washington foreign policy circles, and becomes Mr Trump’s third national security adviser in 14 months.

Mr Trump said Gen McMaster has done “an outstanding job & will always remain my friend”. Mr Bolton will take over on April 9.

I am pleased to announce that, effective 4/9/18, @AmbJohnBolton will be my new National Security Advisor. I am very thankful for the service of General H.R. McMaster who has done an outstanding job & will always remain my friend. There will be an official contact handover on 4/9.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 22, 2018

Talk of the departure had been brewing for some days, despite the White House insisting Gen McMaster and the President had a good working relationship just one week ago.

Just spoke to @POTUS and Gen. H.R. McMaster - contrary to reports they have a good working relationship and there are no changes at the NSC.

— Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) March 16, 2018

Mr Trump has repeatedly clashed with Gen McMaster, a respected three-star general, and talk that he would soon leave the administration had picked up in recent weeks.

His departure follows Mr Trump’s dramatic ouster of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson last week.

It also comes after someone at the White House leaked that Mr Trump was urged in briefing documents not to congratulate Russian President Vladimir Putin about his recent re-election win.

The President did it anyway.

Gen McMaster was brought in after Mr Trump’s first national security adviser, Michael Flynn, was dismissed.

Mr Flynn resigned after disclosures that he had discussed US sanctions on Russia with Moscow’s Ambassador to the United States before Trump took office, and then lied about it both publicly and in an interview with the FBI.

He also admitted he misled Vice President Mike Pence about the conversations.

In a statement released by the White House, Gen McMaster said he would be requesting retirement from the US Army effective this summer, adding that afterwards he “will leave public service”.

The White House said McMaster’s exit had been under discussion for some time and stressed it was not due to any one incident.

Statements of @POTUS and Lt Gen. H.R. McMaster on McMaster leaving as national security adviser: pic.twitter.com/FcVGvg6K34

— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) March 22, 2018

CHANGE THROUGH WAR

Writing in Slate, Fred Kaplan the author ofDark Territory: The Secret History of Cyber Wa r, said Mr Bolton’s appointment “puts us on the path to war”.

Kaplan, writing an article under the alarming headline “It’s time to panic,” says Mr Bolton has repeatedly called for a first strike on North Korea and for ditching a nuclear arms deal with Iran “and the bombing of that country too.”

He warns Mr Bolton’s agenda isn’t “peace through strength” — the traditional stance of Republican presidents since Ronald Reagan — but rather regime change through war.

“He is a neo-con without the moral fervour of some who wear that label — i.e., he is keen to topple oppressive regimes not in order to spread democracy but rather to expand American power,” Kaplan writes.

Professor of Political Science at Pusan National University and leading Korean expert Robert E Kelly warned the appointment was bad news.

Prof Kelly said this appointment was a good enough reason to cancel the planned Trump-Kim summit.

Gen McMaster’s future in the White House has been under speculation in recent days. Picture: Eric Baradat/AFP

COMMENTS ALL IN THE PAST

Speaking on Fox News following his appointment, Mr Bolton said his previous comments were behind him and what mattered most was what the President says.

Mr Bolton said he has written countless opinion pieces and has lost track of the number of comments he has made during the past 11 years.

“They’re all out there in the public record,” he told The Story host Martha MacCallum.

“I have never been shy about what my views are. Frankly, what I have said in private now is behind me.

“The important thing is what the President says and the advice I give him.”

Bolton is NSA. Yikes. All the more reason to cancel the Trump-Kim summit. If it goes badly - which is a distinct possibility with only 9 weeks prep and Bolton now in W House - Bolton will press for airstikes on NK, as he has in the past. This is bad

— Robert E Kelly (@Robert_E_Kelly) March 22, 2018

Trump's new national security adviser John Bolton is the guy who wants to bomb Iran. https://t.co/PJULdCqXXu

— Keith Boykin (@keithboykin) March 22, 2018

CNN White House correspondent Kaitlan Collins tweeted that the President and Bolton had been discussing for weeks how Gen McMaster could be replaced.

Trump and Bolton have been discussing for weeks how he could replace McMaster. According to what a source familiar with those negotiations told me, Bolton promised Trump "he wouldn't start any wars" if he selected him as the new national security adviser.

— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) March 22, 2018

She said a source told her Mr Bolton had promised Mr Trump “he wouldn’t start any wars” if he selected him as the new national security adviser.

She also said the POTUS and his Gen McMaster never got on and the only reason he survived so long is because advisers were sceptical of how bad it would look to have three people fill the role in a year.

Mr Bolton told Fox News he wasn’t expecting the President’s announcement when it happened.

Gen McMaster’s exit is the latest in a string of high-profile departures from the White House that began with Mr Flynn and has also included chief of staff Reince Priebus, chief strategist Steve Bannon, economic adviser Gary Cohn and Mr Tillerson.

A vocal advocate of the Iraq war, Mr Bolton’s appointment had been fiercely opposed by many within Mr Trump’s inner circle, most notably the coterie of military officers who have experienced the brutality of war first hand.

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— with wires