John Bolton considering 2024 presidency, calls Trump 'un-American'
The interview comes after former US President Donald Trump's Monday statement that he would want to "terminate" the US constitution.
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Former US National Security Adviser John Bolton (NY Times)
On NBC News’ “Meet The Press Now," former US National Security Advisor John Bolton confirmed that he is considering preparing for his candidacy in the 2024 presidential race.
Bolton expressed that he would "like to see Shermanesque statements from all the potential candidates. If I don’t see that then I am going to seriously consider getting in [presidential campaign]."
What he is referring to as a Shermanesque statement is a political term meaning a clear and straightforward statement by a political candidate in a certain race that they won't be running for a certain office (in this case, the presidency).
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.
— Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) December 5, 2022
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
When asked in the interview if he is preparing to jump in the race, Bolton replied, "Absolutely". The interview comes after former US President Donald Trump's statement on Monday that he would want to "terminate" the US constitution, which Bolton labeled as "un-American".
After indicating that candidates should decry Trump's comments, he continued by saying, "Honestly, if they don’t, there’s one thing that would get me to get into the presidential race, which I looked at in prior elections, it would be to make it clear to the people of this country that Donald Trump is unacceptable as the Republican nominee.”
According to Bolton, 95% of Republican voters disagree with that statement, which Trump walked back on the next day. But with Trump's recent stack of mishaps and lawsuits, including tax evasion charges and an unreported loan from South Korea for $19.8 million, he may not be seeing the stage light of the 2024 presidential race.
#DonaldTrump, the first president in US history to be impeached twice, declared that he is once against running for office. pic.twitter.com/hpdB2wTLPl
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) November 18, 2022
On a separate note, Bolton claimed last month that subversive elements in Iran, which he dubbed “the opposition”, are arming themselves with weapons stolen from Basij forces and smuggled from Iraq's Kurdistan.
“The Iranian opposition is now being armed, with weapons seized from the Basij, or weapons entering Iran from Iraqi Kurdistan. This reveals the perspective that the systematic effort of the opposition not only to protest but to use coercive force against the government, with the message that we are no longer unarmed, and can fight against the IRGC. This shows that the position of the Islamic Republic is more vulnerable than ever,” he said.
