Ex-national security adviser claims Trump is vulnerable to manipulation through flattery
H.R. McMaster stated that while Trump has the ability to make sound decisions, he doesn't consistently adhere to them.
TroibNews 
H.R. McMaster, the former national security adviser to ex-President Donald Trump, stated on Sunday that Trump requires "a competent team around him" due to his vulnerability to manipulation.
During his appearance on CBS' "Face the Nation," McMaster remarked: "He can make really sound decisions and disrupt things that need to be disrupted in terms of foreign policy, national security, but oftentimes struggles to hang on to those decisions and see them through."
Additionally, he commented on Trump's behavior, saying, "People know kind of how to push his buttons, especially buttons associated with maintaining the complete support of his political base."
McMaster was on the show to promote his new book, "At War With Ourselves: My Tour of Duty in the Trump White House." A retired Army lieutenant general, he served as Trump's national security adviser from February 2017 to April 2018. His book describes White House meetings as “exercises in competitive sycophancy."
In an excerpt shared in the Wall Street Journal, McMaster expressed concern about how Russian President Vladimir Putin manipulated Trump: "Putin, a ruthless former KGB operator, played to Trump’s ego and insecurities with flattery."
Trump and his supporters argue that he is better equipped to confront Putin and other authoritarian leaders compared to his Democratic counterpart, Kamala Harris, citing his ability to project strength. Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) mentioned in a recent "Face the Nation" interview that "Vladimir Putin, just like the Ayatollahs, have played Joe Biden and Kamala Harris like a fiddle," reinforcing Trump's claim that world leaders would dominate Harris if she assumes the presidency.
In his dialogue with host Margaret Brennan, McMaster reflected on whether to include Trump’s relationship with Putin in his book. "I struggled, Margaret, should I write about how Putin tried to manipulate President Trump, or not? And I thought, well, Putin knows how he was trying to do it. So maybe in writing about how Putin was trying to press Donald Trump's buttons, that will make a future President Trump, if he's elected, less susceptible to those kind of tactics."
He pointed out that all presidential administrations have individuals attempting to manipulate the president and noted that when Trump received sound advice, he frequently made effective decisions. McMaster singled out the withdrawal from the nuclear treaty with Iran in spring 2018 as one such instance of a solid decision.
"The narrative around that first year was all about chaos, but we got a lot done," he stated.
He expressed concern over the current Iranian threat, particularly as President Biden has rolled back some of Trump's policies. McMaster emphasized that Iran "is willing to expend every Arab life, every Palestinian life, every Lebanese life, in pursuit of its objective of destroying Israel," asserting that the Iranian threat must be taken seriously.
"I think," McMaster continued, "that the narrative that you constantly hear about turning down the temperature, escalation management, the reluctance, really, to confront Iran directly and impose costs on Iran, that actually gives Iran license to escalate on their own terms, with impunity."
Rohan Mehta contributed to this report for TROIB News
During his appearance on CBS' "Face the Nation," McMaster remarked: "He can make really sound decisions and disrupt things that need to be disrupted in terms of foreign policy, national security, but oftentimes struggles to hang on to those decisions and see them through."
Additionally, he commented on Trump's behavior, saying, "People know kind of how to push his buttons, especially buttons associated with maintaining the complete support of his political base."
McMaster was on the show to promote his new book, "At War With Ourselves: My Tour of Duty in the Trump White House." A retired Army lieutenant general, he served as Trump's national security adviser from February 2017 to April 2018. His book describes White House meetings as “exercises in competitive sycophancy."
In an excerpt shared in the Wall Street Journal, McMaster expressed concern about how Russian President Vladimir Putin manipulated Trump: "Putin, a ruthless former KGB operator, played to Trump’s ego and insecurities with flattery."
Trump and his supporters argue that he is better equipped to confront Putin and other authoritarian leaders compared to his Democratic counterpart, Kamala Harris, citing his ability to project strength. Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) mentioned in a recent "Face the Nation" interview that "Vladimir Putin, just like the Ayatollahs, have played Joe Biden and Kamala Harris like a fiddle," reinforcing Trump's claim that world leaders would dominate Harris if she assumes the presidency.
In his dialogue with host Margaret Brennan, McMaster reflected on whether to include Trump’s relationship with Putin in his book. "I struggled, Margaret, should I write about how Putin tried to manipulate President Trump, or not? And I thought, well, Putin knows how he was trying to do it. So maybe in writing about how Putin was trying to press Donald Trump's buttons, that will make a future President Trump, if he's elected, less susceptible to those kind of tactics."
He pointed out that all presidential administrations have individuals attempting to manipulate the president and noted that when Trump received sound advice, he frequently made effective decisions. McMaster singled out the withdrawal from the nuclear treaty with Iran in spring 2018 as one such instance of a solid decision.
"The narrative around that first year was all about chaos, but we got a lot done," he stated.
He expressed concern over the current Iranian threat, particularly as President Biden has rolled back some of Trump's policies. McMaster emphasized that Iran "is willing to expend every Arab life, every Palestinian life, every Lebanese life, in pursuit of its objective of destroying Israel," asserting that the Iranian threat must be taken seriously.
"I think," McMaster continued, "that the narrative that you constantly hear about turning down the temperature, escalation management, the reluctance, really, to confront Iran directly and impose costs on Iran, that actually gives Iran license to escalate on their own terms, with impunity."
Rohan Mehta contributed to this report for TROIB News
