Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) emerged as one of President Donald Trump’s top confidants in 2017 as they worked together on health care, tax reform and other key issues. Paul is trying to get the ear of Trump yet again as he tries to stop him from appointing neocons into key posts of his administration.
Paul is leading the way to oppose Trump’s picks for CIA Director and Secretary of State. Trump has tapped Mike Pompeo for Secretary of State, who Paul believes is a departure to George W. Bush-era foreign policy.
“I’m perplexed by the nomination of people who love the Iraq War so much that they would advocate for a war with Iran next. I think it goes against most of the things President Trump campaigned on,” Paul said.
Paul also opposes Trump’s pick for CIA Director, Gina Haspel, for showing “joyful glee at someone who is being tortured.” She served under George W. Bush as well as Barack Obama, and had a direct role in the administration of the deep state’s controversial enhanced interrogation programs.
“I find it just amazing that anyone would consider having this woman at the head of the CIA,” Paul said.
Paul is going to have his work cut out for him because more neocons are maneuvering their way into the Trump administration as he opposes Pompeo and Haspel. The current front-runner for the position of national security adviser is John Bolton, a Bush-era leftover who still defends the Iraq War to this very day and opposes diplomacy with North Korea.
“He would be closer to John McCain’s foreign policy. John Bolton still believes the Iraq War was a good idea, he still believes regime change is a good idea, he still believes that nation-building is a good idea,” Paul said about Bolton in 2017 when he was previously being considered for a Trump administration post.
Paul will need to rekindle his relationship with Trump fast, or the administration will not be very dissimilar to that of George W. Bush.
Originally published here: https://www.pb-news.com/news/rand-paul-battles-the-rise-of-neocons-within-the-trump-administration/