Cabinet Members Repudiating the President They Served is Not Unprecedented
But history offers Trump little consolation
James Mattis could be forgiven for feeling ignored. In June, the former defense secretary took the dramatic step of repudiating the president he served in a scathing statement to The Atlantic. Mattis blasted Trump for working to divide the American people and said the United States lacks “mature leadership.” A recent cabinet member attacking the president — five months before an election, no less — achieved bombshell status in the media, but only for a short time, drowned out by the coronavirus pandemic and protests sparked by the killing of George Floyd.
No such overshadowing has plagued former National Security Advisor John Bolton, however, as the release of his book sparked exhaustive coverage. He dominated the news cycle the week of its release, boosted by Trump’s efforts to suppress its publication. Bolton is more specific than Mattis, accusing Trump of condoning Chinese concentration camps, soliciting Chinese President Xi Jinping for help with reelection, and grumbling that he would enjoy executing journalists in America. In case even that was too subtle, Bolton stated in a later interview that he hopes Trump becomes “a one-term president.”
