In an Oct. 3 interview with MSNBC‘s Lawrence O’Donnell, Susan Rice, former Director of the Domestic Policy Council (2021-2023) and former National Security Advisor (2013-2017), sharply criticized Donald Trump’s foreign policy agenda, labeling the former president not only a national security risk but a global threat.
According to The Hill, Rice compared Trump to Neville Chamberlain, a Nazi Germany-era British leader who infamously attempted to pacify Adolf Hitler.
“The fundamentals of national security — that America needs to be strong, that we need to stand with our allies, we need to stand for our values, we have to mean what we say,” Rice said. “These are very fundamental things that never used to be under serious question. And along comes Donald Trump, who really is like the Neville Chamberlain of the Republican Party.”
According to Britannica, in addition to Chamberlain’s controversial decision to allow Nazi Germany to annex the Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia, he also recognized fascist Benito Mussolini’s regime and Italy’s supremacy in Ethiopia
Although Chamberlain eventually abandoned his policy of appeasement after Hitler seized the remainder of Czechoslovakia, it was too late to prevent the conquest sparked by his actions and those of French Premier Édouard Daladier in signing the Munich Agreement giving Germany the Sudetenland, an agreement is widely criticized today for emboldening Hitler.
Rice continued, referring to Trump as a “surrender monkey,” in a reference to his deference to Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
“He’s an appeaser, he’s a surrender monkey, and that’s what we’re seeing in his approach to Ukraine,” Rice said, before pivoting to a Kamala Harris endorsement letter that she and over 700 national security leaders signed. In that letter, the national security experts endorsed Harris for president, citing the latter’s temperament and experience as a reason that Harris would make an ideal and effective commander in chief.
“That is why more than 700 Democrats, Republicans and independents, very senior national security leaders, came together to oppose Donald Trump and support Kamala Harris,” Rice said.
The letter stated, “We do not agree on everything, but we all adhere to two fundamental principles. First, we believe America’s national security requires a serious and capable Commander-in-Chief. Second, we believe American democracy is invaluable.”
It continued, “Each generation has a responsibility to defend it. That is why we, the undersigned, proudly endorse Kamala Harris to be the next President of the United States. Our endorsement of Vice President Harris is an endorsement of freedom and an act of patriotism. It is an endorsement of democratic ideals, of competence, and of relentless optimism in America’s future.”
That endorsement followed 100 former GOP national security leaders’ decision to endorse Harris, and in that letter, they described the former president’s behavior as “chaotic and unethical” in contrast to Harris, whom they said “possesses the essential qualities to serve as president.”
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