H.R McMaster, retired United States Army Lieutenant General and former National Security Advisor for the Trump Administration, was a key eyewitness to the construction of President Trump’s foreign policy, and a critic of how “the last few Presidents” have made the United States vulnerable in the eyes of those who would do them harm.

In a recent interview with CBS News, McMaster spoke of his experience leading to his brief 13-month tenure at the White House, including his multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, giving an insight into the current domestic and international threats being faced by the United States, and the bipartisan skirmishes in the White House.

General McMaster added that “I think our competitors view us as weak and divided - I think they see an opportunity”, referring to the unprecedented rise of China as both an economic force and a political superpower on the international stage. He cites the crippling COVID-19 crisis, an economic recession, and civil unrest (in the wake of George Floyd’s death) in the United States as an opportunity for China to occupy greater influence on the international stage, adding that “China is acting, I think, now much more aggressively because they think it is time to do it - they have a window of opportunity to exploit our weaknesses”.

When asked about what Americans need today, General McMaster stated that “a meaningful, respectful discussion about these very serious challenges to our security, our prosperity, and our influence in the world”, making a damning revelation that while “there are certainly one group of people who are there to serve the elected President and to serve the country”, he indicates that there are groups who wish to “advance their own narrow agendas”.