Review: HR McMaster’s “At War with Ourselves” – Ex-Adviser Critiques Trump

HR McMaster, Donald Trump’s second national security adviser, took over from Mike Flynn in February 2017. By October, McMaster had already penned his resignation letter, storing it in his desk.

Five months later, fed up, he approached John Kelly, Trump’s second chief of staff, and demanded a concrete departure date. Hours later, Trump called to relieve him of his duties. McMaster had served 457 days, a duration he humorously measured as “41.3 Scaramuccis”—a nod to the notoriously brief tenure of a previous White House communications director.

In his book, “At War With Ourselves,” McMaster revisits his 14 months in the White House. Unlike his earlier book, “Battlegrounds,” where he refrained from harsh criticism, this time he does not hold back, deeply affected by the events of January 6.

“It will take a long-term effort to restore what Donald Trump, his enablers, and those who encouraged him took from us that day,” McMaster states, reflecting on the Capitol riot.

Once again, McMaster provides thought-provoking insights. In a disturbing yet intriguing narrative, he depicts Trump as ill-suited for office.

“He proved unable to channel his emotions toward constructive purposes,” McMaster writes, noting that Trump’s sense of grievance led him to seek affirmation from his most loyal supporters rather than broadening his base.

Even now, Trump thrives on his personalized grievances, declaring to his followers: “I am your justice … I am your retribution.”

“Trump lacked basic knowledge of how the government runs,” McMaster observes, a simple truth with far-reaching implications.

“Sometimes his impulses were good,” McMaster adds, “Other times, to use one of his turns of phrase, ‘not so much’.”

This lack of understanding produced troubling outcomes. In a social media post in December 2022, Trump called for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution, to overturn the 2020 election results.

In December 2023, he brazenly mused about dictatorial powers, saying he would assume such authority “on day one” if re-elected.

Trump’s need for admiration extended to his staff and even to foreign adversaries.

Recalling the poisoning of Sergei Skripal in the UK in 2018, McMaster told his wife that he could not fathom Putin’s influence over Trump.

Unlike George W. Bush and Barack Obama, Trump didn’t just seek a reset with Russia, he craved Putin’s approval. After the Skripal attack, Trump was captivated by a New York Post article praising him and condemning U.S. politics. He scribbled a note on it and asked McMaster to ensure it reached Putin.

McMaster never sent it through, opting to hand it to the White House staff secretary’s office. Days later, Trump congratulated Putin via tweet, criticizing Bush and Obama as lacking “smarts” and “energy.”

McMaster’s critique is not reserved solely for Trump. He also targets Obama and Joe Biden, condemning the Iran nuclear deal and accusing Biden of easing sanctions on Tehran and Venezuela and compromising border security.

“I was sympathetic to Trump’s description of the Iran deal as the ‘worst deal ever’,” McMaster recalls. He considers the deal’s financial windfall to Iran as funding for destabilizing actions like those seen on October 7 with Hamas and Hezbollah.

McMaster harshly criticizes Biden for the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, calling it his “most humiliating foreign policy failure.” He blames Trump in part as well for negotiating with the Taliban and agreeing to the release of 5,000 fighters.

Furthermore, McMaster aims a scathing critique at Trump’s enablers. Steve Bannon, who served as Trump’s chief strategist and is now imprisoned for contempt of Congress, is particularly lambasted.

According to McMaster, Bannon and his allies were driven by their agendas, undermining the Constitution to advance their own goals. He describes Bannon’s behavior as sociopathic, likening it to political suicide.

Steve Bannon’s prison sentence will conclude in late October, just in time for the election. He faces a trial for felony fraud charges on December 9 in New York state.

McMaster also criticizes segments of the American right for calling for his removal, including conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and outlets like Breitbart, the Daily Caller, Fox News, and its personalities like Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham. He also holds the Kremlin accountable.

McMaster ends his recount with a wistful touch. A few months after his departure, Trump called him.

“I miss you, General,” Trump said, claiming McMaster had done a great job for both him and the country. McMaster offered a polite yet hollow response, knowing they would never work together again.

Source: The Washington Post, Getty Images