‘SUPERHAWK’ NOW US NAT’L SECURITY ADVISER
WASHINGTON— John Bolton, President Donald Trump’s incoming national security adviser is a divisive foreign policy figure whom US media has called “a hawk’s hawk” or “superhawk.”
His 2007 memoir is titled: “Surrender Is Not An Option” and his favorite targets for criticism include Iran, North Korea, the United Nations, European governments and international treaties.
He served in the US government under the administrations of Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush, who appointed him permanent ambassador to the United Nations.
Colorful figure
However, his appointment to the United Nations was never confirmed by the US Senate and he resigned after serving for 17 months under an ad interim, or recess, appointment.
As national security advis- er, Bolton does not have to be confirmed by the US Senate.
Bolton is known as a colorful figure in Washington and an inveterate bureaucratic infighter, keeping a defused hand grenade on his State Department desk during the administration of George W. Bush.
Like Trump
On the eve of six-nation talks over Pyongyang’s nuclear program in 2003, he lambasted then-North Korean leader Kim Jong-il as a “tyrannical dictator.” North Korea responded by calling Bolton “human scum.”
Like Trump, Bolton never saw combat in any US military action, but did enlist in the Maryland National Guard while waiting for his draft number to be called during the Vietnam War.
Outspoken critic
Bolton, 69, has been an especially outspoken critic of the Iran nuclear agreement, which Trump had vowed to end.
Trump had originally considered choosing Bolton as his secretary of state. But Bolton’s background complicated his chances for Senate confirmation.
Bolton has maintained a pair of political committees, which he has used to funnel political support to hawkish candidates. The top donor to the groups was Robert Mercer, who has given $5 million to Bolton’s super PAC in recent years.