Trump Dismisses Neocon Warhawk Mike Waltz as National Security Advisor Over Signalgate Affair

Replacing Waltz with a MAGA conservative as his National Security Advisor would help strengthen Trump's ability to enact his America First foreign policy and national security agenda

Former National Security Advisor Mike Waltz was never a good fit to advise President Trump on national security issues as a lifelong neocon war hawk so President Trump’s decision to move him to the position of US Ambassador to the UN is a welcome move.

May 3rd Update: It turns out the main reason that Trump fired National Security Advisor Mike Waltz was due to his collusion with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and championing Israeli national security interests over the national security interests of the country he had sworn on oath to defend when he repeatedly urged Trump to heed Netanyahu’s call that “the time was right to obliterate Iran.” He was reportedly fired after holding secret talks with Benjamin Netanyahu. Trump was said to be furious, believing Waltz was “working for” Netanyahu rather than for America. “You work for the president of your country, not a president of another country.” Furthermore, on the day he was fired, Waltz was caught using TM SGNL, an Israeli-modified version of Signal founded by a former Israeli intelligence official with archiving features, to receive and relay potentially classified information including messages he had received from other Trump’s cabinet officials.

In a long expected move yesterday, President Donald Trump fired National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and Deputy National Security Advisor Alex Wong later this week over his involvement in the Signalgate affair in which it was revealed that Waltz invited an anti-Trump liberal magazine editor into a classified national security Signal chatgroup in which senior Trump national security officials were discussing classified, operational war plans against the Houthis. President Trump has nominated Michael Waltz to serve as his UN Ambassador and has designated Marco Rubio to serve as Interim National Security Advisor while continuing to serve as Secretary of State. I think if Waltz has to be in Trump's Cabinet that is the position where he can do the least amount of damage to US national security policy. Unlike Walz, there is no indication that Wong is being re-assigned to another post in the Trump administration. Fox News is reporting that more firings are expected in what hopefully will be remembered as Trump’s “Great Neocon Purge.”

America First Conservative Warnings About Waltz Went Unheeded

As I warned back in November, Walz, who previously worked for arch-neocon former Vice President Dick Cheney, has been a supporter of all America’s forever wars and up until he began auditioning for a position in Trump’s cabinet, has been a huge cheerleader for Biden’s war in Ukraine and provoking a potential war with Russia as were Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US Special Envoy to Ukraine LTG Keith Kellogg (USA Ret.) LTC Darin Gaub (USA Ret.) presciently warned at the time that “Waltz is well known as a hawkish figure and neocon who is more likely to continue to advocate for and push for forever wars than for ending them. If appointed, it remains to be seen how his push for continued conflict will mesh with Trump's goal of ending it.” After Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Waltz suggested the US and NATO might have to fight Russia directly in Ukraine despite the fact that the US has no discernible national security interest in who wins this border dispute being fought on the furthest fringes of Eastern Europe. As recently as late 2023, Walz was extremely critical of the Biden administration for not giving Ukraine enough weapons to defeat Russia and even criticized the administration for not authorizing missile strikes deep inside Russia (which Biden ultimately did authorize in November 2024), that Russian President Vladimir Putin stated would constitute a brazen act of war by the US and NATO. Waltz has also been calling for US bombing strikes on a nuclear armed Iran and was also a major proponent of Bush’s war on Iraq. Responsible Statecraft reported that Waltz opposed Trump’s efforts to get the US military out of or 20-year war in Afghanistan.

Shortly after Trump was re-elected, I wrote: “I am concerned about the number of neocon imperialist warmongers that are being considered for Trump cabinet positions. Also, he is reportedly being advised by the neocon "America First Policy Institute" think tank on who to pick. We may see a lot of Deep Staters in his second term cabinet. The good news is that if he makes VP Elect JD Vance, his main national security policy advisor, he will make the right decision every time.” Meanwhile, during an interview on November 12th, former National Security Advisor and longtime Never Trumper John Bolton could hardly contain his glee at Trump’s choice of fellow neocon Rep. Waltz to serve as his National Security advisor. Bolton’s strong support for Walz’ appointment confirmed my fears that Waltz may be batting for the other team--America Last neocon warmongers who oppose Trump's efforts to end our forever wars. Rep. Adam Kinzinger, another Never Trumper who endorsed outgoing Vice President Kamala Harris for President and spoke at the Democrat National Convention, also praised Trump’s pick of Rubio for Secretary of State.

Glenn Greenwald, a Trump aligned anti-war activist criticized the picks, posting on X: “Trump's last 3 appointees - Elise Stefanik, Mike Waltz (sic), and Rubio - are war hawks fully aligned with the worst prongs of bipartisan DC consensus." As I wrote in November, it seems clear they are not aligned with Trump’s stated America First foreign policy priorities. Unfortunately, Trump’s ‘superhawk’ neocon warmonger Republican establishment picks for Secretary of State with Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and National Security Advisor with Rep. Michael Waltz (R-FL), could persuade him to prolong the war in Ukraine indefinitely as they will likely push Trump to demand harsher peace terms for Russia that Putin will never accept. As I noted back then, the question is will the neocon cabinet officials Trump is surrounding himself with succeed in convincing him to drop his opposition to forever wars being fought in opposition to US national security interests?

While Trump’s decision to transfer Waltz from National Security Advisor to US Ambassador to the United Nations is a clear demotion, it looks like Waltz may have gotten the last laugh. This is due to the fact that he has been reportedly pressing Trump to increase economic sanctions against Russia and provide more arms to Ukraine to sabotage Trump’s efforts to negotiate a peace agreement to end the war in Ukraine and prolong it indefinitely. Unfortunately, it appears that is exactly what Trump is planning on doing as I will reveal in my next article reporting on breaking news that the the State Department announced that the Trump administration has officially ended its effort to negotiate a peace deal with Russia and Ukraine. Waltz has been the de facto leader of the neocon wing of the Trump cabinet so his being forced out as National Security Advisor along with his neocon Principal Deputy National Security Advisor Alex Wong and potentially other neocon officials on the National Security Council next week represents a huge victory for MAGA conservatives.

Gabbard, Vance, Hegseth and Wiles Persuaded Trump to Reject Waltz Plan to Bomb Iran and saved the US from World War Three

One of the reasons that Waltz was dismissed by Trump as his National Security Advisor was because he had alienated a lot of senior Trump administration officials and had clashed with White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles who refused to continue speaking with him over the past several days leaving him with few friends or allies remaining in the Trump cabinet. Another reason that Trump likely wanted to remove Waltz from his position is that he attempted to persuade him to start World War Three with the Islamic Republic of Iran back in March. Accordingly, he was already on thin ice and Trump was mulling replacing him before the Signalgate scandal was first reported in an article published by Jeffrey Goldberg in The Atlantic on March 24th. At the time of the scandal, Politico reported that Trump would likely keep Waltz in place for several more weeks before dismissing him as National Security Advisor because he did not want to be perceived as firing a member of his Cabinet over a liberal media reported scandal as he did to his former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn in February 2017, something he has said he has regretted doing ever since. As reported by Dr. Peter Pry, the late courageous visionary Executive Director of the Task Force on National and Homeland Security that I help lead, Iran likely already has nuclear armed ICBMs.

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard appearing before the US Senate Intelligence Committee during her confirmation hearings a few months ago. She has already proven me right by helping to persuade President Trump to cancel US plans to join Israel in US military strikes on Iran’s underground nuclear arsenal and avoid World War Three.

Three months ago, I worked successfully behind the scenes to help get Tulsi Gabbard confirmed by the US Senate as Director of National Intelligence. At the time, I stated my belief that Trump having her in his Cabinet giving him the Presidential Daily Briefing could make the difference between averting a regional war with Iran that could have resulted in what Russian officials warned would be “uncontrollable global escalation” leading to World War Three potentially including both Russia and the PRC. The New York Times reported that Tulsi Gabbard presented intelligence to President Trump that striking Iran would lead to "a wider war" the US doesn't want i.e. World War Three. She was backed up by Vice President JD Vance, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. As reported by the New York Times on April 17th:

Some American officials were at least initially more open to considering the Israeli plans. Gen. Michael E. Kurilla, the head of U.S. Central Command, and Michael Waltz, the national security adviser, both discussed how the United States could potentially support an Israeli attack, if Mr. Trump backed the plan, according to officials briefed on the discussions. But inside the Trump administration, some officials were becoming skeptical of the Israeli plan. In a meeting this month — one of several discussions about the Israeli plan — Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence, presented a new intelligence assessment that said the buildup of American weaponry could potentially spark a wider conflict with Iran that the United States did not want. A range of officials echoed Ms. Gabbard’s concerns in the various meetings. Susie Wiles, the White House chief of staff; Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth; and Vice President JD Vance all voiced doubts about the attack. Together, they were able to persuade President Trump to call off a joint US/Israeli air and missile strike on Iran's nuclear missile silos that saved the US from World War Three according to the New York Times. On April 7^th, Trump informed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of his decision not to support Israeli strikes on Iran in the White House.

Defense Secretary Hegseth, who has been a staunch MAGA conservative until recently. His disgraced former Chief of Staff Joe Kasper, who reportedly misled him into firing three of his most loyal aides including his Senior Advisor Dan Caldwell for the false claim of leaking classified information in what appears to be a neocon bid to isolate him and pressure him to defect to the neocon wing of the Trump cabinet especially when it comes to a potential war with Iran after it was reported that he was skeptical of Waltz’s plan to join Israel in bombing Iran’s nuclear missile sites. However, I think Hegseth will likely remain on the foreign policy restraint side both with regards to Biden’s war in Ukraine and hopefully with regards to navigating the US away from the brink of a potential Third World War with the PRC over Taiwan.

Who Will Trump Appoint as His Next National Security Advisor?

Politico reported yesterday that US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff is currently Trump’s leading candidate to replace Mike Waltz as Trump's National Security Advisor. Witkoff would be an outstanding choice because he has been the biggest proponent for peace with Russia on realistic terms minimally acceptable to Moscow along the lines of the Istanbul Agreement. Such a peace deal would enable Trump to pursue his brilliant plan to transform Russia from an adversary into a geostrategic partner and neutralize the Sino-Russian military alliance, revolutionizing the global balance of power in America's favor. Sending Witkoff to meet with Putin has constituted a breach of diplomatic protocol as heads of state of nuclear superpowers do not typically meet with foreign subcabinet officials without higher level officials present . However, if Witkoff was appointed National Security Advisor, he would be a member of Trump’s Cabinet so having him continue to meet with Putin would also show more respect for Russia. Witkoff has also been leading negotiations to negotiate a cease-fire agreement in Gaza and has been leading senior-level negotiations with Iran on a nuclear deal to avoid the perceived need for joint US-Israeli airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear missile sites. He has proven amazingly effective to date as Trump's best negotiator. Replacing Waltz with Witkoff would make the MAGA, peace through strength wing of the Trump Cabinet dominant over the Rubio-led pro-World War Three neocon wing.

As Responsible Statecraft notes, if Waltz is replaced with Steve Witkoff, it will likely signal a more restrained foreign policy for the Trump administration focused on resolving disputes not just with Russia over Ukraine but also with Iran diplomatically to avoid yea another unnecessary regional war in the Middle East. But perhaps, the most important result of this shift could be negotiating a diplomatic solution to China's planned blockade of Taiwan to avoid an unnecessary nuclear war with the PRC. Russia is likely to delay any planned major offensive in Ukraine until Waltz is replaced and President Trump makes a decision whether to pull out of Ukraine over Zelensky's refusal to agree to even the most minimal territorial concessions to achieve peace with Russia. With Waltz out, Secretary of State Marco Rubio will become the de facto leader of the neocon wing of Trump’s Cabinet.

However, it is now being reported that Trump’s preferred pick for National Security Advisor Steve Witkoff may not be interested in the job though its certainly possible that Trump could convince him to take it anyway. If not, my recommendation would either be that Trump re-appoint General Michael Flynn or alternatively that he appoint State Department Director of Policy Michael Anton as his National Security Advisor. General Flynn was wrongly terminated from his position as Trump’s National Security Advisor in February 2017 after serving in that position for only twenty-four days over his supposed involvement in the Trump-Russia collusion hoax. However, he has long since been exonerated. Trump’s record on appointing National Security Advisors has not been very good and Flynn was the only America First conservative who has served in that position in the Trump administration.

Michael Anton, who currently serves as Director of State Department Policy Planning is probably the most likely Trump MAGA conservative pick to replace Mike Waltz for National Security Advisor should Stephen Miller decide he isn’t interested in the job. Anton would be an outstanding choice for the role.

Anton has essentially been serving as Witkoff’s deputy as Chief Negotiator leading technical teams negotiating with both Russia to normalize diplomatic ties as well as with Iran to negotiate the technical aspects of the US-Iran nuclear deal so he would be a logical choice if Witkoff cannot be convinced to take the job. Trump’s decision to appoint a foreign policy restrainer like Anton to negotiate a nuclear deal with Iran signaled his strong preference for a nuclear deal with Iran to avoid war. The main issue is that while Iran might agree to what would essentially be a Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) II Agreement, they will likely never agree to give up their centrifuges and enriched uranium for civilian purposes and of course they will never give up their as yet unacknowledged nuclear missile arsenal. Meanwhile, Israeli military planners reportedly believe even comprehensive military strikes on Iran would only set back their nuclear program by one year so what is the point of risking nuclear war for such inconclusive results. Ultimately, there is no pressing need for either air strikes on Iran or a nuclear deal so this is a completely US manufactured crisis much like Biden's war in Ukraine.

Politico is reporting that other possible contenders include Trump’s Deputy White House Chief of Staff and policy chief Stephen Miller, NSC senior director for counterterrorism Sebastian Gorka and Trump’s special envoy for special missions Richard Grenell who also served as Trump’s Acting Director of National Intelligence. Miller would be an excellent choice. Axios is reported this morning that he is currently the “top contender” for the position having indicated he is interested in the job and that Trump would likely not say no if he decides he wants it. While his focus has been principally on domestic issues like border security and immigration, he did a great job defending Trump from Zelensky’s insults in the Oval Office on February 28^th and would likely be an advocate for peace with Russia. Grenell would not be much of an improvement over Walz as ideologically he is somewhere between a neocon and a MAGA conservative on foreign policy because he supported pushing Russia to give up control of most of its four annexed regions to Ukraine and granting them autonomy which was a very unrealistic idea Russia would never accept.

Gorka would be even worse as he is a total neocon warmonger who has continued to make threats against Russia during Trump’s second term. There are also credible reports that he has been serving as a British MI-6 agent. The United Kingdom has been the strongest backer of Biden’s war in Ukraine and has been the country most anxious to provoke a world war between Russia and NATO so its not surprising to see Gorka towing the British propaganda line in that regard. Other candidates mentioned by Politico include LTG Keith Kellogg who served as Acting National Security Advisor for a week following LTG Flynn’s firing and then served for over a year as Trump’s Deputy National Security Advisor before former Vice President Mike Pence appointed him as his National Security Advisor. Much like Gorka, Kellogg would be a poor choice who could be expected to give Trump the same bad advice in fighting Biden’s war in Ukraine in perpetuity and giving up on Trump’s bold plan to form a geopolitical partnership with Russia to neutralize the Sino-Russian military alliance.

Former National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien was also mentioned by Politico this morning as a possible Waltz replacement but he is also a neocon warmonger whose policy prescription for peace in Ukraine is much worse than the Kellogg Plan as he has demanded a full Russian withdrawal to their prewar borders which they would adamantly reject incentivizing them to stage a massive offensive until they overrun nearly half of Ukraine’s territory. Another candidate mentioned for the job is Fred Fleitz who co-authored the original Kellogg peace plan which was briefed to Trump in June and was subsequently adopted by Trump as his own in late November. Fleitz served as Chief of Staff to John Bolton when he served as National Security Advisor to Trump before being fired in disgrace. His connection to Bolton who campaigned against Trump and has been badmouthing him non-stop since he was fired, is likely a disqualifier to consideration for any Trump administration post particularly a Cabinet level position such as this. Another individual who was on the short list for National Security Advisor when Trump was re-elected President is Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby. He is very closely aligned with President Trump on Russia, Ukraine, Iran and China policy and is viewed as one of the leaders of the foreign policy restraint faction of the Trump administration so he would be an outstanding choice.

Another late-breaking Politico article is reporting that Trump may ask Rubio to stay on as Interim National Security Advisor for at least six months and that some of Trump’s top advisors are hoping he will keep Rubio in that dual-role indefinitely much as Nixon did with Henry Kissinger during his presidency. I think that would be a terrible idea as no one should be given that much power and influence over foreign policy and national security policy in the Trump Cabinet. America paid a heavy price for Nixon’s decision to give Kissinger too much power over our foreign policy. It was Kissinger’s idea to fall into the trap of normalizing ties with Communist China in a failed bid to get them to join an entente with Russia against the USSR that subsequent US presidents pursued by building up the PRC both economically and militarily into the nuclear superpower colossus it is today.

A lifetime neocon like Rubio cannot be trusted to support Trump’s desire to make peace with Russia or avoid an unnecessary war with the PRC or the Islamic Republic of Iran given his record of supporting all of America’s forever wars. One has to wonder how heavy a price might America pay were Trump to rely on Rubio’s advice to get into an unnecessary war with China or Iran? On the other hand, I would be thrilled to see Trump pick either Steve Witkoff, General Flynn, Elbridge Colby, Mike Anton or Stephen Miller as his National Security Advisor. None of the other reported options would serve him well if he hopes to be known as “a peace president” and not the author or instigator of a future world war and perhaps even America’s destruction as a nation.

© David T. Pyne 2025

David T. Pyne, Esq. is a former U.S. Army combat arms and Headquarters staff officer, who was in charge of armaments cooperation with the former Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa and the Americas from 2000-2003, with an M.A. in National Security Studies from Georgetown University. He is the former President and current Deputy Executive Director of the Task Force on National and Homeland Security. He recently served as Defense and Foreign Policy Advisor to former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy. He has also co-authored the best-selling new book, “Catastrophe Now--America’s Last Chance to Avoid an EMP Disaster” and his new book “Restoring Strategic Deterrence” will be published in July 2025. He serves as the Editor of “The Real War” newsletter at dpyne.substack.com and previously served as a contributor to “The National Interest”. Here is a link to his interview archive. He also posts multiple times a day on X at @AmericaFirstCon. He may be reached at emptaskforce.ut@gmail.com.

Recent Interviews

April 2nd—Interview with Brannon Howse on Brannon Howse Live to discuss whether China’s Joint Exercise Strait Thunder-2025A is a prelude to a full blockade of Taiwan and whether China would benefit from a Trump decision to start a new war against Iran and bomb Iranian nuclear sites.

April 4th—I will be giving a ninety minute presentation at the Highland Community Center at 5378 West 10400 North in Highland, Utah at 7pm followed by a 30-minute question and answer session. It will include all my latest US national security and foreign policy updates especially Trump’s chances of negotiating an end to the war in Ukraine.

April 7th—Interview with Brannon Howse on Brannon Howse Live to discuss Iran’s recent underground nuclear tests and Russia’s threat that if Trump bombs Iran’s nuclear arsenal, it will cause an “irreversible global catastrophe”—i.e. World War Three.

April 8th—Interview with Nima Alkhorshid on his Dialogue Works podcast to discuss why he started a new war with the Houthis, how a US decision to bomb Iran’s nuclear sites could give China an opportunity to blockade Taiwan as well as why Trump has been unsuccessful in negotiating an end to Biden’s war with Russia in Ukraine.

April 8th—Interview with Brannon Howse on Brannon Howse Live to discuss the recent revelation that the second Trump shooter Ryan Routh, who served as a recruiter for the Ukrainian Foreign Legion asked the Ukrainian military to provide him with a Stinger missile to shoot down Trump Force One during the 2024 presidential campaign.

April 9th—Interview on Main Street Radio on the “Dan the Eagle” show to discuss the importance of Trump’s reciprocal tariffs in restoring America’s economic independence from Communist China, reshoring our Defense Industrial Base and preventing the PRC from blackmailing US leaders into doing their bidding.

April 15th—Interview on Main Street Radio with Jon Twitchell to discuss the latest developments with regards to Trump’s drive to end the war in Ukraine, his threats to bomb a nuclear-armed Iran and potentially start World War Three and the chances that China will blockade Taiwan in April.

April 17th-Interview with Paul Mills on his Off-Grid Desert Farming Podcast to discuss the latest developments regarding the potential outbreak of World War Three with Russia over Ukraine, with China over Taiwan, and with Iran over its continued nuclear weapons production.

April 17th-Interview with Brannon Howse on Brannon Howse Live to discuss the recent revelation that JD Vance, Tulsi Gabbard and Pete Hegseth succeeding in persuading President Trump to call off plans for a joint US-Israeli air and missile strike on Iranian nuclear missile sites to avert World War Three.

April 21st—Interview with Brannon Howse on Brannon Howse Live to discuss ongoing attempts to isolate Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth by firing three of his top loyalists on false charges and try to get Trump to fire him for refusing to support a joint US-Israeli military strikes on a nuclear-armed Iran.

April 28th—Interview with Dr. Maria to discuss the latest updates with regards to Trump’s US peace framework to end the war in Ukraine, whether Putin supports it and the ramifications of Zelensky’s continued refusal to make any concessions likely to result in a permanent cut off of all US military aid to Ukraine.

April 28th—Interview with Brannon Howse on Brannon Howse Live to discuss Trump’s ten-day ultimatum for Zelensky to accept the US peace framework, the likely cause of the power outages in France, Spain and Portugal, Trump’s threats to bomb Iranian nuclear missile sites and the likelihood of China blockading Taiwan later this year.

May 1st—Interview with LTC Sargis Sangari (USA Ret.) to discuss President Trump’s top trade and foreign policy accomplishments during his first 100 days and potential pitfalls for his policies later this year particularly with regards to a potential war with Iran, ending the war in Ukraine, forming a geostrategic partnership with Russia and hopefully avoiding a complete Chinese takeover of Taiwan.

Upcoming Interviews

May 2nd—Interview with Brannon Howse on Brannon Howse Live to discuss the Trump administration’s decision to end its attempts to mediate peace between Russia and Ukraine, to sign a minerals deal with Ukraine on Zelensky’s terms and to commit to sell arms to Ukraine for the next decade. We will also discuss Trump’s firing of Mike Waltz as National Security Advisor as well and who he will choose to replace him.

May 7th—Interview with COL Rob Maness (USAF Ret.) on the Rob Maness show to discuss the latest developments regarding Trump’s efforts to end the war in Ukraine with a new US peace framework, the signing of the new US-Ukraine minerals deal, US war plans against Iran, a potential Chinese blockade of Taiwan and the latest Trump cabinet re-shuffle.

May 20th—Interview on Main Street Radio with Jon Twitchell to discuss the latest developments with regards to Trump’s drive to end the war in Ukraine, his threats to bomb a nuclear-armed Iran and potentially start World War Three and the chances that China will blockade Taiwan early this fall.