Mar 22, 2018

Meet John Bolton, Trump's new national security adviser

Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton speaks during the Conservative Political Action Conference last month. Photo: Alex Wong / Getty Images

President Trump said Thursday that national security adviser H.R. McMaster, who's resigning, will be replaced by John R. Bolton, a hawkish former United States ambassador to the United Nations.

Quick facts about Bolton:

  • Axios' Jonathan Swan reported in early January citing sources saying Bolton is expected to be part "the next phase of Trump's national security team."
  • Bolton, a Fox News contributor, will take office on April 9th.
  • He served under President George W. Bush as both under secretary of state and ambassador to the UN.
  • One area where he and Trump contrast sharply is the Iraq War. Trump has called the war a “huge mistake,” while Bolton insists it was the correct move.
  • He and Trump are staunch opponents of the Iran nuclear deal, but Bolton has gone so far as to call for Iran to be bombed. He also wrote a WSJ op-ed last month titled: The Legal Case for Striking North Korea First.
  • Bolton served as one of Mitt Romney's foreign policy advisers during his 2012 presidential bid.

Correction: This story has been updated to reflect that Bolton's title was under secretary of state, not assistant secretary of state.

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