Name: White House Directed Hiring of Conspiracy Theorist Over Pentagon Objections
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White House Directed Hiring of Conspiracy Theorist Over Pentagon Objections

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The White House directed Defense Department officials to hire a former National Security Council staffer fired for circulating a conspiratorial memo and known for Islamophobic tweets, people familiar with the matter told Foreign Policy. The move is part of an aggressive push to staff the Pentagon with figures loyal to U.S. President Donald Trump and with connections to ousted former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn that has been met with resistance across the river.&nbsp;In late May, the White House Liaison Office instructed the Defense Department to hire Rich Higgins as a chief of staff to the undersecretary of defense for policy. Anthony Tata has been selected for the undersecretary role, but he has yet to have a Senate confirmation hearing.&nbsp;Facing Pentagon pushback, the White House subsequently backed off, telling Pentagon officials not to hire Higgins until Tata is confirmed as the agency’s top policy official, but to get his paperwork ready. Yet the White House reached out again about Higgins this week, a U.S. official told Foreign Policy, asking why the Pentagon had not begun the hiring process for him.&nbsp;The people familiar with the decision said that the White House Presidential Personnel Office, led by Trump’s former personal aide and body man Johnny McEntee, was behind the move. The Washington Post Higgins was under consideration for a role at the Pentagon.Simone Ledeen,&nbsp;who has previously served at the Pentagon and Treasury and&nbsp;whose father co-wrote a 2016 book with Flynn, also recently joined the Defense Department as the agency’s top Middle East policy official.The direction to hire Higgins raised concerns among some defense officials that Tata would appear to be presuming confirmation for the job he had only been nominated for.Jack Detsch is a Pentagon and national security reporter at Foreign Policy.&nbsp;Twitter:&nbsp;Robbie Gramer is a diplomacy and national security reporter at Foreign Policy.&nbsp;Twitter:&nbsp;Kathryn Wheelbarger’s departure marks the second high-level official to leave this week as the White House stocks the Pentagon with loyalists.Anthony Tata says he retracts his 2018 tweets calling former President Barack Obama a “terrorist leader.”In a move that could raise questions in Congress, Trump loyalist Anthony Tata has been asked to sit in on meetings prior to his expected nomination to a senior Pentagon post.Latest12345Latest AnalysisAccording to IR textbooks, the United States, Russia, and China are on a collision course.Six months into Russia’s war, seven thinkers outline its impact on foreign policy.Misperception, sunk costs, escalation, and internationalization all make conflicts last longer than planned.Russian diplomats were once viewed with begrudging respect in the West. Now they’re seen as irrelevant mouthpieces for Putin’s war in Ukraine.LatestSign up for Morning BriefEnter your emailBy signing up, I agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use and to occasionally receive special offers from Foreign Policy.By signing up, I agree to the and and to occasionally receive special offers from Foreign Policy.Expand your perspective with unlimited access.Loading graphicsComplete your profileShow moreAug 15, 2022 |In her role as administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, Samantha Power is often thrust into the forefront of some of the world’s biggest crises. From working to ensuAug 11, 2022 |Last summer, the United States decided to end its longest war. But just days after the U.S. military withdrew from Afghanistan, Kabul fell—and the Taliban took control of the country. Aug.Aug 09, 2022 |Want the inside scoop on Russian arms sales to Africa? Care to learn more about how Ukraine is arming itself and how Beijing views Washington’s support for Taiwan?FP subscribers are alreaUkraine plans to use Russia’s own armor against it.The Russian autocrat’s end has been predicted, wrongly, for two decades.Queen Elizabeth II’s passing comes amid a moment of reckoning for Britain’s colonial past.Ukrainian officials say the dramatic changes on the battlefield are a sign they can win the war.Next: NewslettersRemind me later

The White House directed Defense Department officials to hire a former National Security Council staffer fired for circulating a conspiratorial memo and known for Islamophobic tweets, people familiar with the matter told Foreign Policy. The move is part of an aggressive push to staff the Pentagon with figures loyal to U.S. President Donald Trump and with connections to ousted former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn that has been met with resistance across the river.&nbsp;In late May, the White House Liaison Office instructed the Defense Department to hire Rich Higgins as a chief of...

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Jack Detsch

Robbie Gramer

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White House Directed Hiring of Conspiracy Theorist Over Pentagon Objections

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