President Trump has lost two important figures in his administration within 48 hours. His national security advisor, Mike Flynn, resigned Monday night, while Trump’s nominee for Labor secretary, Andy Puzder, withdrew on Wednesday, the day before his Senate hearing. So, Washington wants to know, who will replace them?
Meanwhile, fallout from Flynn’s forced resignation continues as Congress prepares to investigate his communications with the Russian ambassador. My colleague Jenna Lifhits reports from Capitol Hill that senators from both parties are saying the transcripts of wiretapped phone calls between Flynn and the ambassador, Sergey Kislyak, ought to be released to the public.
Doing so would be clarifying for everyone in this still unfolding story. If Flynn’s conversations were innocuous, the transcripts would confirm that. If there’s a larger conspiracy between Team Trump and Vladimir Putin’s Russia, as many of Trump’s critics believe, the transcripts could shed light on that, too.
Another Former Military Commander for NSA?
Bob Harward, the retired Navy vice admiral, was reportedly offered the job of national security advisor but has not yet accepted. One veteran of the George W. Bush White House who knew him when he worked for that administration’s National Security Council recalls Harward as “tough, sinewy, tactical, very smart.” But some conservative foreign-policy hands are expressing concerns that Harward could bring a more realist, establishment sensibility to the NSC.
The admiral is a technocrat who once worked under now-Defense secretary Jim Mattis at Central Command. Mattis considered Harward for a top job in the Pentagon, under secretary of intelligence. Both Mattis and Harward were also involved tangentially with the email scandal that derailed the career of General David Petraeus. Petraeus had been in close contact with a Tampa socialite, Jill Kelley, on email—which drew the ire of Petraeus’s mistress Paula Broadwell. After Broadwell began anonymous threatening Kelley over email, Kelley complained to the FBI. That led to a federal investigation which revealed Petraeus had shared classified documents with Broadwell.
The investigation also looked into Kelley’s other email interactions with top military brass—including Mattis and Harward. “What a Leader you were to these heads of State,” Kelley wrote in one email to Harward following a military social event. “You ROCK!!!” As the Washington Post reported in 2015, “The unredacted portions of the e-mails…contain no evidence of improper behavior,” from Mattis or Harward. “But taken together, the records depict two wartime commanders who were easy marks for the flattery of an exuberant socialite.”
Kirsanow at Labor?
Conservatives are buzzing that Peter Kirsanow, a lawyer and former member of the National Labor Relations Board, could be Trump’s pick to replace Puzder. The White House has not mentioned anyone in particular, and Kirsanow did not reply to an email request for comment.
But the 63-year-old George W. Bush administration veteran would be a better fit for the Trump administration than Puzder on issues like immigration. We’ll see if the buzz turns into action.
Meanwhile, Wisconsin governor Scott Walker tweeted Wednesday afternoon what looked like both a denial of interest in the Labor job as well as a hint that he’ll be seeking a third term in Madison.
McConnell to Trump: Stop Shooting Yourself in the Foot
If you want to know how the White House is viewed down Pennsylvania Avenue on Capitol Hill, Fred Barnes’s interview with Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell on Wednesday is worth a read. The Kentucky Republican has spent a lot of time with Trump in recent weeks and agrees with much of the new president’s agenda so far. But the president, McConnell says, is his own worst enemy. Here’s an excerpt:
Read the whole thing here.
Song of the Day
“Bang the Drum All Day,” Todd Rundgren
