Donald Trump’s former National Security Advisor gave a damning assessment of picks for the president-elect’s new cabinet, summing them up in one word.
John Bolton said that rather than having “loyalty” from those selected to serve in his new administration, Trump would prefer “fealty,” referring to a swearing of unwavering allegiance to a feudal lord or leader.
The president-elect has already demonstrated his willingness to appoint his cheerleaders to top positions, including Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, who were recently named as the joint heads of the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
Other eye-brow raising picks include Fox News host Pete Hegseth as defense secretary.
During an interview with CNN, Bolton was asked about those selected by the President-elect so far. “I do think there’s a group of people who think that they are going to be able to screen out people, not on the basis of philosophy so much as on their attitude toward the president,” he said.
“And the word loyalty is often used. I think that’s the wrong word. Actually, I think what Trump wants from his advisors is fealty, really a futile sense of subservience.
“And you know, he may get that, but I will tell you that that will not serve him well over the course of his next term, and it certainly won’t serve the country well.”
Webster’s dictionary defines “loyalty” as “the quality or state or an instance of being loyal,” and “fealty” as “the fidelity of a vassal or feudal tenant to his lord.”
In a 2020 opinion piece, which also discussed Bolton’s relationship with Trump, Washington Post writer Karen Tumulty offered a definition of the difference.
“Loyalty is the most perfect form of mutual respect,” she wrote. “It is a bond that goes two ways, and that is why it endures. Fealty, on the other hand, must be endured. It is based on power, and ends the moment the one who commands it no longer has a grip on the one who is shackled by it.”
Bolton served as the 25th United States Ambassador to the United Nations from 2005 to 2006, before later becoming Trump’s third official National Security Advisor, holding the position from April 2018 to September 2019.
