Meet Army Gen. H.R. McMaster, the next national top security adviser

[BeckyDem]

By Chuck Williams



Editor’s note: This interview with U.S. Army Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, former commander of the Maneuver Center of Excellence at Fort Benning, published in July 2014. It is being recirculated as President Donald Trump picked McMaster as his new top security advisor, a position that became vacant last week with the ouster of Michael Flynn, a retired Army general.

Here is the original interview:

Maj. Gen. H.R. McMaster is a combination of warrior, intellectual and leader. He was recently recognized by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world.

McMaster earned a reputation for his 1997 book, “Dereliction of Duty,” which questioned political and military leadership during Vietnam.

Read more here: http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/news/local/military/article133566199.html#storylink=cpy

[Aviation Pro]

1. Inadvertently

Orange Dump selected a good man.

[BeckyDem]

4. I'm not sure what to think of it yet. He will need to get rid of Bannon from the NSC

before I let my guard down.

[njhoneybadger]

11. Pence picked him

Trump will be forced to resign soon(I Hope)

[wishstar]

2. I am breathing sigh of relief he didnt pick Bolton

Last edited Mon Feb 20, 2017, 08:53 PM - Edit history (1)

That mustache did in Bolton plus Bolton's hatred for Iraq couldn't compensate for his hatred of Russia

[salin]

16. Agreed.

Let's thank the mustache. In round 1 'interviews' for cabinet positions, it was reported that a big priority for Trump was that people "look the part", and Bolton lost out because of the mustache. Dude's level of unhingedness matches that of other Trump Team members (Bannon.) Tonight, I appreciate the vanity of Bolton and his affinity for his mustache - even after the reporting that the mustache is why he didn't get an appointment earlier.

Hey John - keep that mustache, it is part of your brand, don't lose it in (at least in the next 3 and 11/12 years.

[Fritz Walter]

3. It's pretty sad when we're relieved that the WORST bad apple wasn't chosen

By which, I'm referring to Bolton.
How does one measure the comparative intensity of nightmares?

[Warren DeMontague]

5. I'm surprised he didn't go with Pufnstuf

[Chellee]

8. Trump didn't want the competition for "best hair."

nt

[Warren DeMontague]

9. I think they both use the same makeup people.

They have similar hues.

[BeckyDem]

13. lol

It's good to laugh at this mess sometimes.

[Hortensis]

6. Could be worse, but Bannon won by making it impossible

for Harward and Petraeus to accept--by requiring them accept Bannon staffing their office. This man did, a bad sign, but at least Bannon wasn't able to cut out all almost qualified applicants. And at least Bolton didn't replace Flynn.

NY Times:

"General McMaster is seen as one of the Army’s leading intellectuals, first making a name for himself with a searing critique of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for their performance during the Vietnam War and later criticizing the way President George W. Bush’s administration went to war in Iraq.

As a commander, he was credited with demonstrating how a different counterterrorism strategy could defeat insurgents in Iraq, providing the basis for the change in approach that Gen. David H. Petraeus adopted to shift momentum in a war that the United States was on the verge of losing.

General McMaster’s challenge now will be to take over a rattled and demoralized National Security Council apparatus that bristled at Mr. Flynn’s leadership and remains uncertain about its place in the White House given the foreign policy interests of Stephen K. Bannon, the former Breitbart News chairman who is the president’s chief strategist.

Slate: "

The two other candidates for the job were former U.N. ambassador John Bolton and Lt. Gen Robert Caslen Jr. When he announced his pick, Trump made a point of praising Bolton, who had already been passed over for an administration job. “We had some really good meetings with him. Knows a lot. He had a good number of ideas that I must tell you I agree very much with,” the president said. “So we’ll be talking with John Bolton in a different capacity.”

[BeckyDem]

12. Are you saying we know McMaster will defintely accept Bannon on the NSC?

If he can't find a way to control that, we're in trouble. Thank you for the NYT & Slate information.

[Hortensis]

14. 45/Bannon insist on choosing the appointee's staff,

amateurs ideologically and practically tied to Bannon, in there to sabotage their boss's influence on 45. From what people who know them say, this impossible situation is the big reason both Harward and Petraeus turned the position down. The NSA is being filled with politically motivated amateurs, including literally talking heads hired in from Fox.

[BeckyDem]

15. The fight is in part about the IC, I would agree with that.

What makes no sense to me is to see this man going along with Bannon being involved, that just blows my mind. I hope to God that is not true. His intellect, background and world view doesn't add up to a Bannon mentality.

[Adrahil]

19. He might, but that's not necessarily a huge problem.

McMaster has a great reputation in the Defense community. One thing he is known for is being able to manage staff. I think McMaster has the character to stand up to Bannon. But we will see.

McMaster is someone who generally wants to keep the military politically neutral. I think he probably took the job to try an blunt what he sees as a push by Trump's advisers to politicize the DoD. I don't know if he can do it. I admire his intestinal fortitude in giving it a shot.

[BeckyDem]

20. I hope so, Bannon is a very dangerous character.

His reputation looks to be better than all the other riff raff so far.

[C_U_L8R]

7. Yet another guy who wants a Vietnam do-over

That said, he seems to be garnering high praise (pr).

[dalton99a]

21. Yep. It's best not to confuse him with an actual Vietnam vet.

He's a Vietnam "expert" who apparently never set foot in Vietnam.

[Squinch]

10. Huh. Wonder what illegal deal HE'S trying to get Russian backing for.

Seems like every one of them has an illegal Russian deal in the works. It's a pre-req.

[Lucinda]

17. Tapper said good things about him today. I haven't started reading yet..thanks for the link!

[BeckyDem]

18. Seems to be, I will wait and see how he deals with Bannon.

Maybe some sanity will come from this man against the craziest among the group.

[Lucinda]

22. I hope so!