Rep. Justin Amash reacted to John Bolton’s sudden ouster as White House national security adviser Tuesday by saying he “never should have been hired.”
“I hope the president’s next national security adviser will focus on securing peace, not expanding war,” the Michigan independent tweeted.
Mr. Amash, a former Republican who publicly left the GOP in July, was among the first members of Congress to weigh in after President Trump announced on Twitter earlier Tuesday that Mr. Bolton had resigned.
“I informed John Bolton last night that his services are no longer needed at the White House,” Mr. Trump said in a series of tweets. “I disagreed strongly with many of his suggestions, as did others in the Administration, and therefore….I asked John for his resignation, which was given to me this morning.”
Mr. Bolton later said that he offered to resign Monday evening and that Mr. Trump told them they would “talk about it” Tuesday.
A longtime Republican consultant and statesman, Mr. Bolton, 70, was named the president’s national security adviser in March 2018, making him the third person to hold that position during the Trump administration after Michael Flynn and H.R. McMaster.
Mr. Bolton’s successor will be announced next week, Mr. Trump tweeted.
Elected to Congress in 2011, Mr. Amash was the first and only Republican member of the House of Representatives to speak in support of impeaching Mr. Trump prior to leaving the party. Mr. Trump responded at the time by calling Mr. Amash “one of the dumbest [and] most disloyal men in Congress.”
• Andrew Blake can be reached at ablake@washingtontimes.com.
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