President-elect Donald Trump has selected K.T. McFarland to be his deputy national security adviser, answering to newly appointed National Security Advisor Lieutenant General Michael Flynn and marking the third female appointment into his administration.
“I am proud that KT has once affairs decided to serve our country and join my national security team,” the President-elect said in a statement released shortly after the announcement. “She has tremendous experience and innate talent that will complement the fantastic team we are assembling, which is crucial because nothing is more important than keeping our people safe.”
A former FOX News analyst, McFarland worked in several Republican administrations of former presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, and Ronald Reagan in various roles. Between 1970 and 1976, McFarland was an adviser to Henry Kissinger on the National Security Council. During her contributor post on FOX News, McFarland often praised Trump’s judgement on international affairs.
“Nobody has called foreign policy right more than President-eect Trump, and he gets no credit for it,” McFarland said in a statement. “I’m honored and humbled that he has asked me to be part of his team.”
Flynn, who was announced by Trump to become his national security advisor just last week, first announced the decision Friday on Twitter.
So proud & honored to have KT McFarland as part of our National Security team. She will help us #MAGA
— General Flynn (@GenFlynn) November 25, 2016
The announcement included bipartisan statements of support from former senator Joe Lieberman, and Robert C. “Bud” McFarlane, former Reagan’s national security adviser.
“As a friend and colleague, I have watched KT’s depth of knowledge and understanding grow,” McFarlane said, adding Trump’s choice as “one of our country’s most insightful national security analysts.”
“In asking KT McFarland to become his deputy national security adviser, President-elect Trump has brought to the top ranks of his administration one of our country’s most experienced, informed, and wise foreign policy and national security experts,” Lieberman said.
McFarland’s appointment will not require the U.S. Senate to confirm, according to the New York Times.
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