Washington – A senior Trump administration official was fired following criticism in a private speech of President Donald Trump’s policies and his inner circle of advisers.
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Craig Deare, whom Trump appointed a month ago to head the National Security Council’s Western Hemisphere division, was on Friday escorted out of the Executive Office Building, where he worked in Washington.
A senior White House official confirmed that Deare is no longer working at the NSC and has returned to the position he previously held at the National Defense University. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an incident not otherwise made public, and provided no further details.
But current and former administration officials say Deare’s termination was linked to remarks he made Thursday at a private talk at the Wilson Center, a Washington think tank. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter.
According to one person who attended the discussion, Deare slammed the Trump administration for its policies on Latin America, specifically its rocky start to relations with Mexico. That person spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a private event.
Trump signed an order in the first week of his presidency to build a border wall with Mexico, jumpstarting a campaign promise. The move prompted Mexico’s President Enrique Pena Nieto to cancel his trip to Washington in late January.
The person who attended the Wilson Center discussion also said that Deare openly expressed frustration over being cut out of most of the policy discussions about Mexico, saying that members of Trump’s inner circle, including chief strategist Steve Bannon and Trump’s son-in-law and adviser, Jared Kushner, have not consulted with NSC directorates as the White House formulates policy.
Deare has been on the faculty of National Defense University in Washington since 2001. He joined the university’s College of International Security Affairs in 2010 and most recently served as dean of administration.
The person who attended the Wilson Center talk also noted that Deare made several remarks about how attractive Trump’s daughter, Ivanka Trump, appeared, remarks that person described as “awkward.”
Deare did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Officials with the Wilson Center also declined a request for information, saying the discussion was off the record.
Deare is the second senior NSC official to leave in under a week. On Monday, Trump’s national security adviser, retired Gen. Michael Flynn, resigned after revelations that he discussed sanctions with a Russian diplomat before Trump was sworn in, then misled Vice President Mike Pence about the nature of those conversations.
Where is this man’s loyalty? Trump is smart.
What made him think he could kiss up to the administration on one end while degrading them on the other?
Very smart. A real genius who never read or wrote a complete book in his life. Every real leader, (Putin, Hitler, Pharoh, Ahashverush come to mind) surrounded themselves with ‘yes’ men, so that every nareshkeit that enters their tiny minds when they wake up in the morning should never be analyzed, questioned, debated, or even discussed. The Fuhrer is always right.
Another bum gone. Like when adolf fired his generals and took complete military command. Trumpf and Von Bannon’s Stalingrad is coming soon…
You geniuses may feel great about yourselves comparing him to Hitler, or otherwise putting him down. However, realize, that whether he’s right or wrong, or even if you geniuses may even be right (not the issue), Deare has a right to express himself, and even to be frustrated at being cut out of policy decisions. But he should not express those frustrations in outside meetings. If he feels he is not contributing he should resign. He should know that if he wants to play with the big boys he’s subject to the rules and can find himself out. You geniuses should know that too. But if you feel really smart putting someone down, I won’t kill your joy,.
So now the President needs to find about four thousand people to appoint who are:
–Able to be confirmed
–Not insiders
–Capable
–Who have never said anything against President Trump
–Willing to serve
That makes the pool of candidates pretty shallow.
Trump should realize that there are career professionals in government who are non partisan and know more than he does. If he would spend his time breading policy and briefing papers instead of watching television he may gain some knowledge himself.
Maybe Deare’s comments were more than awkward, they were sexist.The Left should be applauding the firing – but no it was about Ivanka, a Trump, so she had it coming. Hypocrites!