With Michael Flynn resigning the post after a few weeks, and Vice Admiral Robert Harward turning the position down, the Trump Administration has settled on Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster as their latest National Security Adviser, something of a surprise as he was not widely reported as among the front-runners.
Advertisement
US President Donald Trump has appointed Lieutenant General Herbert Raymond McMaster as the new National Security Advisor a week after the controversial resignation of Lt. The president then brought the cameras into an ornate sitting room to introduce McMaster, seated beside him in uniform, as “a man of tremendous talent and experience”.
The Times described McMaster as “a highly decorated Army officer”, and “one of the military’s leading intellectuals”. McMaster and his team of 10 tanks destroyed more than 80 Iraqi tanks and vehicles and he was awarded the Silver Star.
Whether that matters remains to be seen.
Democrats seem to have welcomed McMaster as compared to Flynn who had to face severe criticism from the them. There is also speculation that Moscow is blackmailing the US leader. “The United States, and the world, are safer for his decision”. General H.R. McMaster is an outstanding choice for national security adviser. His book, “Dereliction of Duty”, published in 1997, takes a deep dive into the behind-the-scenes actions and inactions by the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the Johnson administration’s execution of the war in Vietnam.
Retired general Michael Flynn resigned from the job after just 25 days, when it was revealed that he misled Vice President Mike Pence about his conversations with the Russian ambassador about sanctions.
Trump was forced to scramble to replace Flynn, but the process was reportedly hampered by tussling between the White House and potential candidates over autonomy on staff selection. For that reason, McMaster isn’t thought to be one to back down if challenged by anyone in the White House.
McMaster said the US leaders, both those in the Pentagon and White House, failed to develop a plan to pacify a Viet Cong insurgency or to defeat the North Vietnamese Army. The two big differences between him and Harward is that McMaster is on active duty and “his wife won’t kill him if he takes the job, as Harward’s wife might have”. McMaster is very likely to give Trump his best advice without any consideration as to alternative narratives that he considers to be less than truthful.
Praise for Trump’s pick came from both sides of the political aisle.
Russian Federation has used “hybrid warfare” in Crimea and eastern Ukraine that is part political, part disinformation, and part military, he said.
Even some of Trump’s sharpest critics on the Republican side were effusive. Sen.
“I have had the honor of knowing him for many years, and he is a man of genuine intellect, character and ability”, McCain said.
“I know John Bolton we’re going to be asking to work with us in a somewhat different capacity”, Trump said.
He further recalled that during the war in Iraq, McMaster helped to develop the initial strategy, and was against the withdrawal of troops, an issue which he not changed his mind on since.
Trump tabbed General McMaster on Monday.
Advertisement
President Trump was angered after he was not fully briefed on one of the first executive orders drafted by Bannon.
