President Trump in an interview airing Sunday characterized national security adviser John Bolton as “a hawk” who would “take on the whole world at one time.”
When asked by Chuck Todd on NBC’s “Meet the Press” about whether he felt he was being “pushed” into conflict with Iran by others in his administration, Trump said that he had both doves and hawks in his Cabinet.
“John Bolton is absolutely a hawk. If it was up to him he’d take on the whole world at one time,” Trump said. “But that doesn’t matter because I want both sides.”
{mosads}Trump tweeted last week saying that the U.S. military was ready to retaliate against Iran for shooting down a U.S. drone, but said he decided not to do so when he learned the casualty numbers.
“We were cocked & loaded to retaliate last night on 3 different sights when I asked, how many will die. 150 people, sir, was the answer from a General. 10 minutes before the strike I stopped it, not proportionate to shooting down an unmanned drone,” he wrote.
He has since tweeted that he ordered the strike to not go forward “at this time,” possibly indicating that a potential strike against Iran might still be possible.
Bolton on Sunday reportedly warned Iran not to mistake the Trump administration’s “prudence and discretion” for weakness.
Bolton said in Jerusalem that Tehran does not have a “hunting license in the Middle East,” according to The Associated Press.