Neocons are Annoyed that Trump Might Nominate a Non-Interventionist to a Pentagon Position

Neoconservatives have been throwing a fit at the prospect of retired Lieutenant Colonel Douglas Macgregor joining the Pentagon.

The Washington Free Beacon reported that Kentucky Senator Rand Paul is pushing the Trump administration to hire Macgregor to replace John Rood, the Defense Department’s leading policy official.

The Beacon voiced particular concerns about Macgregor’s “history of controversial claims about American Jews and their alleged influence over the media and U.S. government.”

The Beacon noted that in a “2012 interview circulating among national security insiders, for example, Macgregor insisted that ‘neocons’ are ‘making decisions in Washington that in their minds are beneficial to a foreign power and are not necessarily good for the American people or the United States.’”

“It is a mistake to insist, as I increasingly hear from people, that ‘all Jews are somehow or another unconditional supporters of whatever the Israeli state wants to do regardless of what is in American interest,” Macgregor said to the Daily Bell. “That’s simply not true. What you have are numbers of people who call themselves neocons. They operate in a variety of settings in the government and in the media, and they support or advocate, for all intents and purposes, unconditional support for whatever the Israeli government wants to do. They are no means the majority and they are by no means representative of what I would call Americans who happen to be Jewish.”

Macgregor has appeared on Fox New host Tucker Carlson’s show and has continued expressing non-interventionist views regarding foreign policy.

Paul’s adviser Doug Stafford told the Beacon that Macgregor would be a good fit in Trump’s “America First” administration. “Senator Paul has always suggested to President Trump that he fill more foreign policy spots with people who agree with his foreign policy,” Stafford stated. “Colonel Macgregor agrees with President Trump and his America First policies.”

When former national security adviser John Bolton was fired, Macgregor’s name was put forward as a potential replacement after reports of him speaking personally with President Trump surfaced.

If nominated, Macgregor is likely to face a struggle in the confirmation process. After all, the Senate is filled with neocon hawks who will take issue with Macgregor’s non-interventionist stances on Iran.

In the Beacons view, Macgregor has “minimized the threat posed by Iran, arguing in an appearance on Carlson’s program that ‘there’s no evidence that Iran wants to attack us.’”

Macgregor is one of the few voices of sanity when it comes to foreign policy. The never-ending wars have cost the U.S. a pretty penny and it should now focus its attention on domestic matters.

Questioning the U.S.’s relation with Israel should not be grounds for smear jobs. Israel is a First World nation that can defend itself without the U.S. having to subsidize it and or become attached to its foreign policy agenda.

The fact that neocons are expressing their doubts only speaks well of Macgregor.

Trump should not hesitate in nominating him.