John Bolton: We refused to swap Viktor Bout for Paul Whelan, and "for very good reasons". “This is a huge victory for Moscow over Washington,”
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Hotair ^
| 12/09/2022 | Ed Morrissey
“This is a huge victory for Moscow over Washington,” former national security director John Bolton declared this morning on CBS. “It endangers other Americans in the future, who can be grabbed and used by bargaining chips,” he said of the swap of Brittney Griner for Viktor Bout, one of the world’s most
dangerous men before his arrest and conviction.Bolton also revealed in this clip that the Trump administration had an offer to trade Paul Whelan for Bout two years ago. They passed, and as Bolton says, “for very good reasons” (via Caleb Howe at Mediaite):The 1-for-1 prisoner swap of Brittney...
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Trump turned down Viktor Bout-for-Paul Whelan prisoner swap, John Bolton says
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New York Post ^
| December 8, 2022 | Caitlin Doornbos
Former President Donald Trump shot down Russian attempts to trade former Marine Paul Whelan for “Merchant of Death” arms dealer Viktor Bout, former national security adviser John Bolton said Thursday — as Trump ripped his successor for agreeing to send Bout home in exchange for the return of WNBA star Brittney Griner.
Bolton recalled in an interview with CBS that he was in the midst of his 17-month tenure at the White House when Whelan was detained on concocted espionage charges in December 2018. “The possibility of a Bout-for-Whelan trade existed back then,” said Bolton, 74, “and it wasn’t made,...
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John Bolton Reminds Us Why Rand Paul Was Right to Block Him From Becoming Secretary of State
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based politics ^
| July 13 | Jack Hunter
John Bolton casually admitted in an interview on Tuesday that he has helped planned coups abroad. Afterward,
Sen. Rand Paul said that blocking Bolton from becoming secretary of state in 2016 was one of his “proudest moments.” Paul told Politico in November 2016, “I’ll do whatever it takes to stop someone like John Bolton being secretary of state. He’s opposed to everything Donald Trump ran on: that the Iraq war was a mistake, regime change made us less safe in the Middle East, including in Iraq.” Less safe indeed. Bolton’s foreign policy impulse toward any country is usually to bomb...
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Rand Paul: John Bolton is nothing more than a warmonger, a liar and a loser!
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Twitter ^
| June 25 | Sen. Rand Paul
@RandPaulBlocking John Bolton from becoming Sec of State was one of my proudest moments! IÂ’m
sure â¦@realDonaldTrump in retrospect, said: “that son of a gun Rand Paul is right - Bolton is nothing but a warmonger, a liar and a loser!
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Massie: Rand Paul deserves the Nobel Peace Prize for stopping John Bolton becoming Secretary of State
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Twitter ^
| June 22 | Thomas Massie
@RepThomasMassieIf, as John Bolton supposedly implies in his book, @RandPaul convinced @realDonaldTrump not to make John Bolton his Secretary of State, then Rand Paul deserves the Nobel Peace Prize! (and a thank you from POTUS) -- Can't link to article on here so click through via twitter...
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Trump wanted John Bolton as Secretary of State but feared ‘son of a b*tch’ Rand Paul would block nomination
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New York Daily News ^
| June 21st | By CHRIS SOMMERFELDT
President Trump called Rand Paul an expletive in 2018 while fuming that he would’ve tapped John Bolton as his second secretary of state if it wasn’t for the bull-headed Republican senator, according to the former national security adviser’s new book. Bolton’s
bombshell of a memoir, “The Room Where It Happened,” recounts that Trump raised his scorn for Paul during a March 2018 Oval Office meeting while musing about wanting to fire then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. “I’d love to have you over there,” Trump told Bolton, according to the book, a copy of which was obtained by the Daily News...
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Rand Paul Calls For President Trump to Strip John Bolton’s Security Clearance
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BLP ^
| Feb 2, 2020 | Richard Moorhead
Senator Rand Paul is calling for President Trump to strip the security clearance of jilted former National Security Advisor John Bolton, after the ultra-hawk revealed classified national security information in an upcoming tell-all book. Bolton
was fired by Trump as National Security Advisor in September for endlessly agitating for neocon wars... ...No one, especially not John Bolton, should be able to use their security clearance for profit! I say revoke his clearance now â¦@realDonaldTrumpâ© https://t.co/nH0qyrwEYe — Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) February 1, 2020 Sources indicate that the removal of BoltonÂ’s clearance ranges from possible to likely. President Trump slammed his...
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Rand Paul on John Bolton’s Firing: ‘The Chances of a War Worldwide Go Greatly Down’
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GP ^
| 09/10/2019 | Cassandra Fairbanks
Kentucky Senator Rand Paul is celebrating the firing of President Donald Trump’s National Security Adviser John Bolton, noting that ‘the chances of a war worldwide go greatly down.” Senator
Paul asserted that Bolton was “working against Trump” and that “Bolton’s probably the leading advocate for regime change everywhere.” “Bolton’s probably the leading advocate for regime change everywhere,” Paul told Fox News. “He’s got the naïve worldview that believes that we should recreate the world in our image by toppling countries through violent overthrow and that somehow democracy will prevail. “And I think when we’ve done it in the Middle East,...
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Rand Paul: Trump Firing John Bolton Was ‘Necessary’
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Breitbart ^
| 10 Sep 2019 | JOSHUA CAPLAN
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) on Tuesday praised President Donald Trump for firing National Security Advisor John Bolton, saying the move was a “necessary action.” I
commend @realDonaldTrump for this necessary action. The President has great instincts on foreign policy and ending our endless wars. He should be served by those who share those views. https://t.co/XEBwzySxac— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 10, 2019
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Rand Paul: John Bolton is a 'malign influence'
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The Hill ^
| 05/16/19 03:14 PM EDT | ALEXANDER BOLTON -
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), a close ally of President Trump who has supported the president’s desire to pull U.S. troops out of the Middle East, says national security adviser John Bolton is a “malign influence.” Paul,
who believes the U.S. should reduce its military presence in Syria and Afghanistan, says he is alarmed by the recent mobilization of U.S. combat troops to counter what some Trump officials see as a rising threat posed by Iran. Asked about Bolton’s role in the recent deployment of an aircraft carrier strike group and an Air Force bomber task force, Paul said, “I fear...
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Rand Paul Advice To Trump: 'Don't Hire John Bolton' As National Security Adviser
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International Business Times ^
| 2-19-2017 | Marcy Kreiter
Nearly a week since U.S. President Donald Trump fired national security adviser Michael Flynn, U.S. Sen. Rand Paul advised against appointing former U.N. Ambassador and White House Chief of Staff John Bolton. Trump’s first choice, retired Navy special forces officer Robert Harward, who served under Defense Secretary John Mattis, turned down the
position last week and reports say the White House has ruled out former CIA Director David Petraeus, who was ousted as the nation’s top spy amid a scandal over his sharing confidential documents with his mistress. Flynn resigned last week amid questions on whether he discussed sanctions with...
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J Street: John Bolton as State Dept. deputy would damage US; Rand Paul Threatens to Block Nomination
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Times of Israel ^
| 12/13/2016
Left-wing Jewish group warns Trump’s reported pick for deputy secretary of state is ‘hostile to the notion of diplomacy itself’; Rand Paul also threatens to block nomination. Liberal
Jewish group J Street spoke out aggressively Monday night against former US ambassador to the UN John Bolton, amid reports that he is President-elect Donald Trump’s preferred choice for deputy secretary of state. Political sources told NBC that Bolton, the firebrand diplomat who served as George W. Bush’s envoy to the world body between 2005-2006, would be tasked with day-to-day management of the State Department under the chosen secretary — currently expected...
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Rand Paul Explains Why John Bolton Should Be 'Nowhere Close' to the State Department
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Townhall ^
| 12/11/2016 | Cortney O'Brien
Former Republican presidential candidate and Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul has a strong opinion on John Bolton's candidacy to serve in Donald Trump's State Department. The former UN ambassador is being considered for the No. 2 spot in the agency, yet Paul argues that Bolton's endorsement of the Iraq War disqualifies him from
working in the administration. “John Bolton doesn’t get it. He still believes in regime change. He’s still a big cheerleader for the Iraq War,” Paul said. “John Bolton is so far out of it and has such a naive understanding of the world.” Bolton should get "nowhere close" to the State...
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Rand Paul Blasts Giuliani, Bolton As Possible Trump Secretary of State Picks [Trump KY 30 Pts Lead!]
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CBSNews ^
| November 20, 2016 | EMILY SCHULTHEIS
EMILY SCHULTHEIS CBS NEWS November 20, 2016 Rand Paul Blasts Giuliani, Bolton As Possible Trump Secretary of State Picks As President-elect Donald Trump assembles his cabinet, he’ll have to have many of those top positions approved by the Senate -- and Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul said Mr. Trump might have a hard
time getting people like former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani or former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton passed as secretary of state. “You know, it’s a very close vote. I mean, there’s 52 Republicans. Some of the people that have been put forward I think are not guaranteed to...
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Rand Paul: Will Donald Trump betray voters by hiring John Bolton?
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Rare.us ^
| November 15, 2016 | Senator Rand Paul
Rumors are that Donald Trump might pick John Bolton for Secretary of State. Heaven forbid.One of the things I occasionally liked about the President-elect was his opposition to the Iraq war and regime change. He
not only grasped the mistake of that war early, but also seemed to fully understand how it disrupted the balance of power in the Middle East and even emboldened Iran.We liberated Iraq, but today their best friend is Iran, their second greatest ally is Russia, and their third strongest alliance is with Syria. Trump really seems to get the lesson. Hillary Clinton never did.Most importantly...
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Rand Paul: I oppose both Rudy Giuliani and John Bolton for secretary of state
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The Guardian ^
| 11/16/2016 | Ben Jacobs and Spencer Ackerman
Senator Rand Paul reiterated his opposition to both former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani and former UN ambassador John Bolton as secretary of state in an interview with the Guardian on Tuesday. The interview follows an op-ed in Rare, an online conservative publication, where Paul condemned Bolton as “out of touch”. The
Kentucky senator grounded his opposition in the importance that Donald Trump “pick people who agree with his foreign policy”. Trump repeatedly argued on the campaign trail that the Iraq war was a mistake and condemned what he saw as an overly interventionist foreign policy from Democratic rival Hillary...
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The Anti-Rand Paul Primary (John Bolton, Peter King and Lindsey Graham)
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The Daily Caller ^
| April 20, 2015 | Alex Pappas
Call it the anti-Rand primary. There
are at least three Republicans who seem likely to run for president in part so they can attack Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul’s libertarian-leaning foreign policy stances on the campaign trail. These anti-Rand candidates — South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, former U.N. ambassador John Bolton and New York Rep. Peter King — are ramping up their criticism especially now that Paul has officially entered the race for the White House. All three are the longest of long shots when it comes to actually winning their party’s nomination. But each of them — national security hawks...
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