In one fell swoop, John Bolton displayed the very neocon values that have made so many on the right and left despise the war hawk.
In an appearance Tuesday on CNN, Bolton seemed to boast about being part of a number of coups d’état during an analysis of the one-sided Soviet-style show trial being presented by Speaker Nancy Pelosi that’s being propped up by the media as a legitimate exercise.
The former national security adviser ousted by President Trump insisted the former president’s actions on Jan. 6, 2021, were not “defensible,” but said it was “a mistake, as some people have said, including on the committee, that somehow this was a carefully planned coup d’etat aimed at the constitution. That’s not the way Donald Trump does things.”
“As I say, none of it defensible. But you have to understand the nature of what the problem of Donald Trump is,” he continued. “He is, to use a Star Wars metaphor, a disturbance in the force. And it’s not an attack on our democracy. It’s Donald Trump looking out for Donald Trump. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence.”
CNN’s Jake Tapper interjected to say, “I don’t know that I agree with you. To be fair, with all due respect, one doesn’t have to be brilliant to attempt a coup.”
“I disagree with that,” Bolton said. “As somebody who has helped plan coups d’état—not here but, you know, other places—it takes a lot of work.”
Jake Tapper: “One doesn’t have to be brilliant to attempt a coup.”
John Bolton: “I disagree with that. As somebody who has helped plan coup d’etat, not here, but other places, it takes a lot of work.” pic.twitter.com/REyqh3KtHi
— Justin Baragona (@justinbaragona) July 12, 2022
Tapper would come back to the coup d’etat remark hoping to get some juicy details, but Bolton would disappoint, saying: “I’m not going to get into the specifics.”
Interestingly, he did name Venezuela as a success when Tapper pressed.
Jake Tapper follows up on John Bolton’s past coup planning.
Bolton: “I’m not going to get into the specifics, but–”
Tapper: “Successful coups?”
Bolton brings up the failed Venezuelan coup, prompting Tapper to add: “I feel like there’s other stuff you’re not telling me.” pic.twitter.com/bJAa07h8Ow
— Justin Baragona (@justinbaragona) July 12, 2022
The Washington Free Beacon summed up Bolton’s remarkable admission smartly with this headline, “BEASTMODE: Bolton Schools CNN Host on the Art of Coups d’État,” and the following video production:
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Tom Tillison grew up in Maryland before moving to Central Florida as a young teen. It is in the Sunshine State that he honed both his passion for politics and his writing skills. Tillison also contributes to BizPac Review.
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