President Donald Trump on Monday announced that he was naming Army Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster as his new national security adviser.
McMaster will assume the post previously held by Michael Flynn, whom the White House says misled Vice President Mike Pence about phone conversations Flynn had with Russia. Trump asked for Flynn’s resignation letter one week ago.
Trump’s first choice to fill Flynn’s spot was Navy Vice Adm. Robert Harward, but Harward turned down the job last week.
McMaster told reporters that he was looking forward to joining Trump’s national security team, and “doing everything that I can to advance and protect the interests of the American people.”
Trump said McMaster, who received a Silver Star and a Purple Heart during the Gulf War, “is a man of tremendous talent and tremendous experience.”
In 1997, McMaster authored a book titled: Dereliction of Duty: Johnson, McNamara, and Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Lies That Led to Vietnam. In it, McMaster is highly critical of military leaders for failing to challenge the White House in the midst of a disastrous war.