OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Former President Donald Trump is the only declared candidate for president in 2024 from either of the two major parties, but it appears he’s got his first challenger for the Republican nomination: John Bolton, who once served as Trump’s national security adviser.
In an interview with the Good Morning Britain, Bolton, known as a foreign policy hawk, said his primary focus would be on getting tougher with rivals Russia and China while going on to claim that Trump’s influence within the Republican Party is in “terminal decline.”
He also made clear that he wouldn’t be simply a vanity candidate.
“I would get in to win the nomination, and I would do it primarily on the basis that we need a much stronger foreign policy,” he told the morning show.
“I think it’s important that it’s understood not just in Moscow, but it’s understood in places like Beijing, that unprovoked aggression against your neighbors is not something the United States and its allies will tolerate,” he continued.
The Daily Mail reported further:
Bolton has been a fixture of Republican administrations for decades, serving as Ronald Reagan’s assistant attorney general, assistant secretary of state for international organization affairs under George H. W. Bush, and multiple roles under George W. Bush.
He served as under secretary of state for arms control and international security affairs from 2001 to 2005, then was appointed US ambassador to the UN, while also campaigning for the Iraq War as director of the Project for the New American Century.
Under Trump, he served from April 2018 to September 2019 as national security adviser, two years after he was overlooked as a potential secretary of state because the GOP president ‘didn’t like his moustache’, insiders said.
Eventually, Trump and Bolton began to disagree heavily over foreign policy regarding Afghanistan and Iran. In September 2019, Trump fired Bolton by tweet, saying his “services are no longer needed” due to their “many” disagreements. Bolton later refuted that characterization of events and said that he offered to resign his post.
In his interview with Good Morning Britain, Bolton, 74, said: ‘I think Trump’s support within the party itself is in terminal decline. I wouldn’t run as a vanity candidate. If I didn’t think I could run seriously, then I wouldn’t get in the race.”
Bolton told NBC’s “Meet the Press” in early December that he was considering a White House run. “You can’t simply say, ‘I support the Constitution.’ You have to say, ‘I would oppose people who undercut it,'” he said, accusing Trump of the latter.
BREAKING: Fmr. Nat’l Security Adviser John Bolton is considering a 2024 presidential run if it would prevent fmr. President Trump from taking office again.
Bolton: “You can’t simply say, ‘I support the Constitution.’ You have to say, ‘I would oppose people who undercut it.’” pic.twitter.com/Twy8pluMYT
— Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) December 5, 2022
“I’d like to see Shermanesque statements from all the potential candidates. If I don’t see that, then I’m going to seriously consider getting in,” he added.
Trump declared his candidacy in mid-November during an event at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.
“America’s comeback starts right now,” Trump said to a room full of supporters. “Unlike other presidents, I kept my promises.”
“The world was at peace, America was prospering, and our country was on track for an amazing future— because I made big promises to the American People and, unlike other Presidents, I kept my promises,” he said. “Under our leadership, we were a great and glorious nation, something you haven’t heard for quite a long period of time. We were a strong nation, and importantly we were a free nation. Now, we are a nation in decline. We are a failing nation.”
He declared: “I am tonight again announcing my candidacy for President of the United States.”
BREAKING: President Donald J. Trump, the 45th President of the United States, announces his candidacy for re-election as president in 2024. pic.twitter.com/R7zBQmhLtk
— RSBN 🇺🇸 (@RSBNetwork) November 16, 2022
When asked by reporters who he would pick as his running mate, Trump said, “I’ll let you know very soon.”
Importantly, he won’t have his daughter Ivanka Trump’s assistance in any future administration. She issued a statement following the event explaining why she was not in attendance at the event like some of her other siblings.
It also comes after the New York Post reported that Trump “spent part of daughter Tiffany’s lavish Mar-a-Lago wedding this past weekend trying to convince his much-loved elder daughter, Ivanka, and son-in-law Jared Kushner to be with him on stage” when he made his announcement.
“I love my father very much,” Ivanka said. “This time around, I am choosing to prioritize my young children and the private life we are creating as a family. I do not plan to be involved in politics.”
“While I will always love and support my father, going forward I will do so outside the political arena,” she added, per the Daily Wire. “I am grateful to have had the honor of serving the American people and I will always be proud of many of our Administration’s accomplishments.”
