Former national security adviser John Bolton, who served under former President Donald Trump, branded his ex-boss as an “old and tired” candidate while urging the GOP to seek a “fresh face” in 2024.
Bolton, who also served as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations under former President George W. Bush, made the comments in an interview published Saturday with the Guardian. The veteran diplomat told the outlet there were “a lot of reasons” for Republicans to buck Trump as their 2024 presidential nominee, citing GOP losses in this month’s midterm elections as proof voters had “switched Trump off their brain.”
ONLY THE BEST PEOPLE? QUESTIONS ABOUT WHO MIGHT STAFF A SECOND TRUMP WHITE HOUSE
“Even if they loved his style, loved his approach, loved his policies, loved everything about him, they don’t want to lose,” Bolton said.
“The fear is, given the results on [Nov. 8], that if he got the nomination, not only would he lose the general election, but he would take an awful lot of Republican candidates down with him,” he added.
Trump announced his 2024 White House bid in the days after predictions of a “red wave” failed to materialize, causing pundits on both sides of the aisle to label him as a weakened candidate. Some observers have noted, however, that Trump would have further diminished his political standing by delaying his campaign launch.
Discussing the former president’s political power, Bolton labeled Trump a “political liability” who only had influence in Republican primary races.
“Relying on that endorsement or trumpeting yourself as the Trump-endorsed candidate is poisonous in the general election,” he explained. “So if you actually want to win elections, Trump is not the answer.”
Even that influence, Bolton claimed, was waning among Republican voters. The longtime Republican figure said he had conducted his own polling that found that Trump’s hold on GOP voters was fading with time.
As for alternatives to Trump for the party, Bolton referenced Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), who has been pitted against the former president as a rival after his landslide reelection earlier this month. He argued that DeSantis could be the new face that the party is looking for.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
“A lot of people look to him as the next-generation candidate,” Bolton said of DeSantis. “That’s one of Trump’s biggest problems. His act is old and tired now.”
Bolton is one of several Trump allies who have spoken out against the former president, including former Gov. Chris Christie (R-NJ), former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and former Vice President Mike Pence. All three have also been floated as 2024 presidential contenders.
