Former President Donald Trump described John Bolton, his former national security adviser, as a “moron” who he had used when dealing with foreign leaders. On Friday morning Trump took to his Truth Social platform after an interview by Bolton was released on CBS News. In the interview, Bolton called Trump “poison” for the Republican party.
In response to those comments, Trump said on Truth Social that he considered Bolton one of the “dumbest people” he met in the government. However, he continued by saying that he had utilized Bolton’s abilities well.
He further added that Bolton was one of the “stupid voices” that led to the deadly wars in the middle east, and their great cost of $7 trillion. This $7 trillion cost for the Middle East has frequently been cited by Trump, however, according to PoliticoFact that statement, which Trump made for the first time in April 2018, was not entirely true.
Trump continued to say that Bolton was great for intimidating “hostile foreign leaders” so with him by his side he had been able to make some “big negotiations.” He added that when foreign leaders saw Bolton they often thought that Trump was going to go to “war,” which is why they would often concede
Bolton has previously served in multiple different offices dealing with national security. Following his leaving the Biden administration in September 2019 he had not made any specific comments regarding Trump. However, following his leaving office he became a vocal and adamant critic of Trump. During the CBS News segment, he even went as far as to claim that he had been considering launching his own presidential campaign in 2024.
