Republican Hawks Conclude Trump is Dangerously Imprudent

This week, after the conclusion of both party conventions, 50 Republican Party National Security elites jointly issued the statement in bold below announcing their conclusion that

• Trump would be the most reckless President in American history
• Trump would put at risk our national security and well-being
• Trump would be a dangerous President
• Trump lacks basic knowledge of Constitution, laws, and institutions
• Trump has little understanding of our vital national interests
• Trump compliments our adversaries and threatens our allies
• Trump displays an alarming ignorance of basic facts of international politics
• Trump claims he “knows more about ISIS than the generals do” despite his breathtaking lack of knowledge
• Trump is unable or unwilling to separate truth from falsehood
• Trump does not encourage conflicting views
• Trump lacks self-control and acts impetuously
• Trump has alarmed our closest allies with his erratic behavior
• Trump cannot tolerate personal criticism

All of these are dangerous qualities in an individual who aspires to be President and Command-in-Chief, with command of the U.S. nuclear arsenal.

Consider this list.  If this is an accurate assessment of Donald Trump many would hesitate to hire him to teach kindergarten, much less to control our nuclear codes.

This is a profoundly unusual indictment of Donald Trump that cannot be easily dismissed, because it comes from leaders in his own party who represent the best thinkers and most experienced practitioners in that party on National Security issues.

Below the actual letter, I examine this text as a statement of the core characteristics of a leader.

Here is the entire text (bold) of the letter:

The undersigned individuals have all served in senior national security and/or foreign policy positions in Republican Administrations, from Richard Nixon to George W. Bush. We have worked directly on national security issues with these Republican Presidents and/or their principal advisers during wartime and other periods of crisis, through successes and failures. We know the personal qualities required of a President of the United States.

None of us will vote for Donald Trump.

From a foreign policy perspective, Donald Trump is not qualified to be President and Commander-in-Chief. Indeed, we are convinced that he would be a dangerous President and would put at risk our country’s national security and well-being.

Most fundamentally, Mr. Trump lacks the character, values, and experience to be President. He weakens U.S. moral authority as the leader of the free world. He appears to lack basic knowledge about and belief in the U.S. Constitution, U.S. laws, and U.S. institutions, including religious tolerance, freedom of the press, and an independent judiciary.

In addition, Mr. Trump has demonstrated repeatedly that he has little understanding of America’s vital national interests, its complex diplomatic challenges, its indispensable alliances, and its democratic values on which U.S. foreign policy must be based. At the same time, he persistently compliments our adversaries and threatens our allies and friends. Unlike previous Presidents who have limited experience in foreign affairs, Mr. Trump has shown no interest in educating himself. He continues to display an alarming ignorance of basic facts of contemporary international politics.  Despite his breathtaking lack of knowledge, Mr. Trump arrogantly claims that he understands foreign affairs and “knows more about ISIS than the generals do.”

Mr. Trump lacks the temperament to be President. In our experience, a President must be willing to listen to his advisers and department heads; must encourage consideration of conflicting views; and must acknowledge errors and learn from them. A President must be disciplined, control emotions, and act only after reflection and careful deliberation. A President must maintain relationships with leaders of countries of different backgrounds and must have their respect and trust.

In our judgment, Mr. Trump with is overriding ego has none of these critical qualities. He is unable or unwilling to separate truth from falsehood. He does not encourage conflicting views. He lacks self-control and acts impetuously. He cannot tolerate personal criticism. He has alarmed our closest allies with his erratic behavior. All of these are dangerous qualities in an individual who aspires to be President and Command-in-Chief, with command of the U.S. nuclear arsenal.

We understand that many Americans are profoundly frustrated with the federal government and its inability to solve pressing domestic and international problems. We also know that many have doubts about Hillary Clinton, as many of us. But Donald Trump is not the answer to America’s daunting challenges and to this crucial election. We are convinced that in the Oval Office, he would be the most reckless President in American history.

50 Republican Party National Security elites wrote and signed this letter, including a director of the CIA and National Security Agency, two Secretaries of Homeland Security, VP Cheney’s National Security Adviser, a director of National Intelligence, two Deputy Secretary of State, a US Trade Representative, President of the World Bank, two members of President Bush’s National Security Council, a former aid to Henry Kissinger, and six aids to Secretary of State Condolezza Rice.

But more importantly for my purposes here is to examine the actual list of ‘injuries and usurpations’ in this letter to unpack what these 50 elites argue are the core characteristics of an effective leader.

Their letter includes these minimum desired characteristics—a Leadership Dozen...

A leader should…

1. Be the opposite of reckless (prudent)
2. Be cautious and careful (not be dangerous)
3. Never put our national security and well-being at risk
4. Understand our Constitution, laws, and institutions
5. Challenge our adversaries and support our allies
6. Understand the basic facts of international politics
7. Understand his/her own limitations with humility (Here I am interpreting their critique of Donald Trump claiming he “knows more about ISIS that the generals do” despite his breathtaking lack of knowledge)
8. Be able and willing to speak in a candid and informed manner (to separate truth from falsehood)
9. Encourage conflicting views
10. Demonstrate self-control and patience
11. Reassure our closest allies with steady and reliable behavior
12. tolerate personal criticism

So, we have a list of what some of the most conservative and hawkish American elites take as their shared conventional wisdom on the core characteristics of an effective leader and that list reads:

1. Prudence
2. Cautious and Careful
3. Risk averse
4. Knowledgeable on law and processes central to governance and politics
5. A reliable ally who holds adversaries accountable
6. Knowledgeable on international politics and negotiation
7. Aware of one’s own limitations (humble and builds a diverse team)
8. Able and willing to speak in a candid and informed manner
9. Encourages conflicting views
10. Demonstrates self-control and patience
11. Reassures our closest allies with steady and reliable behavior
12. Tolerates personal criticism

I find this list remarkable, because it includes among the 12 essentials some skills that hard right hawks do not usually recognize: the importance of caution and prudence and being risk averse, for instance. 

The list also includes skills that are sometimes wrongly associated with soft liberals, but here we see as central to hard right hawks, like the importance of encouraging conflicting views, self-control, patience, tolerance, and humility.