Former U.S. national security advisor John Bolton is not so sure President Donald Trump will be willing to make the transfer out of office easy if he is unable to win the upcoming election.
The Washington Post’s Robert Costa asked Bolton if he believes Trump will follow the peaceful transfer of power and leave the White House peacefully if he were to lose in November.
“Well I certainly hope so and I think it’s important for Republicans especially to make that clear,” Bolton said.
Watch his comments below:
Former National Security Advisor John Bolton on whether he thinks there will be a peaceful transfer of power if President Trump loses the election in November: "I hope so…I think in the Trump Administration you can't be certain of anything." https://t.co/zfKnDTOnW5 pic.twitter.com/6a5CvI4PSB
— Washington Post Live (@postlive) June 23, 2020
His comments come shortly after he appeared on ABC News to discuss the release of his upcoming book and the “danger” of a second presidential term for Trump, as IJR previously reported.
“I think the concern I have, speaking as a conservative Republican, is that once the election is over if the president wins, the political constraint is gone,” Bolton said.
He added, “And because he has no philosophical grounding, there’s no telling what will happen in a second term.”
Bolton expressed his hope Americans will only remember Trump as a “one-term” president.
Costa pressed Bolton on why he is not so sure Trump will follow the peaceful transfer.
“I think in the Trump administration you can’t be certain of anything,” Bolton said.
He continued, “I wish we weren’t faced with this choice. I wish there were a real conservative Republican on the ballot, there’s not. It’s not going to be a happy time from my perspective.”
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is convinced Trump will need to be escorted out of the White House by the military if he loses, as IJR previously reported.
Biden was asked by “The Daily Show” host Trevor Noah if he considered what would happen if Trump refused to leave.
“I promise you: I am absolutely convinced they will escort him from the White House with great dispatch,” Biden said.