President Donald Trump remains commander in chief for only more 10 weeks, until President-elect Joe Biden takes office in January. But during that time, Trump is in a position to make destabilizing foreign policy choices that could sow chaos and restrict Biden’s future policies.
While the president has been raging on Twitter about an election he sees as illegitimate, his administration is rapidly exerting control over key national security positions — elevating the risk of mayhem and alarming experienced officials across Washington, D.C.
On Monday, Trump fired Defense Secretary Mike Esper, removing one of the key officials who have, to some degree, pushed back against the president’s plans. He replaced Esper with Christopher Miller, the former head of the National Counterterrorism Center, who is known for encouraging the U.S. to more aggressively confront Iran, which Trump allies want to pressure before the president leaves office.
A series of further personnel moves at the Pentagon followed: Top defense officials resigned and were replaced by Trump loyalists, including Anthony Tata, who has called former President Barack Obama a “terrorist leader” and has pushed a range of unhinged conspiracy theories, and GOP operatives Kash Patel and Ezra Cohen-Watnick.
“The only thing that has kept Donald Trump from doing things that would have been absolutely crazy, and I would underscore absolutely, was the prospect of reelection and political pressure,” said a former Obama administration official who requested anonymity to speak frankly. In a transition period, “The limited guardrails that have been on this presidency would no longer be there.”
“We would see this president take precipitous action in ways that would be counter to our national interest but then would also set in motion crises that the Biden administration would have to account for,” the former official added.
The possibilities worrying the ex-Obama staffer and others range from Trump launching a war, to using an executive order he signed last month to place political loyalists in some influential roles usually held by civil servants. | 