After the Hurricane

Bolton’s dismissal is one of the highlights of a presidency which has become accustomed to an abundance of bad news.

No one will regret that this hurricane is over. The pain is still to come. Seventeen months of John Bolton in the White House has added maximum risk to a presidency which itself is a permanent and insurmountable risk. With kindling in Venezuela, the Persian Gulf, North Korea and Afghanistan, Hurricane Bolton provided the incentive to light it. From the moment Donald Trump appointed him as national security advisor, global insecurity increased; and it remained at an alarming level until he was dismissed on Tuesday for bad manners.

Bolton’s dismissal is one of the highlights in a presidency that has become accustomed to an abundance of bad news. His appointment was the result of Trump’s chaotic style, and a decision made in one of his stellar moments in front of the television, Twitter in hand. Bolton was a regular on Trump’s favorite network, Fox News. Trump liked Bolton’s innovative and warmongering views, choosing him to replace the rational and orderly Gen. H. R. McMaster.

Trump is especially dangerous when he is out of control. In reading a speech from the teleprompter or following the ceremonial script, Trump is very much like his predecessors; but let loose at night on his couch, or in conversations alone with foreign leaders (as has occurred with Vladimir Putin), he causes the whole administration to tremble, especially the Secret Service.

During his time with George W. Bush, Bolton was a warmongering hurricane, and the same was the case with Trump; the difference being that he was the master of his own destiny. Twenty years ago, after the 9/11 attacks, the president wanted war; now he is avoiding it, especially as he thinks about his reelection. The man he has just sacked favors preventive wars and, above all, regime change. Nothing would have given him greater satisfaction than the overthrow of Nicolas Maduro, Ali Khamenei or Kim Jong Un. Bolton’s style suited Trump when he wanted to throw the adults who desired organization and predictability out of the White House. As national security advisor, Bolton spent the last 17 months dismantling the National Security Council in order to devote himself to whispering warmongering ideas to a president who very much liked them when spoke on Fox News. This was Bolton’s contribution to the destruction of institutions, which Steve Bannon, the campaign adviser and apostle of Trumpist disruption – advocated.

Now, as he faces a second election, Trump wants results: a disarmament agreement, like the one he was looking for with North Korea; withdrawal of troops, like the one he was negotiating with the Taliban; and direct negotiations with Iran. Bolton was a hindrance to any such triumph, while Mike Pompeo − who shares similar ideas and instincts − is Trump’s loyal servant, willing to agree with him in spite of his own convictions. Bolton has fallen, but “Yes Sir” Mike has seen his stock rise.