The former National Security Adviser to the 45th president, John Bolton, has urged the Republican Party “to remove the taint of what Trump has done”.
"There has to be a serious conversation in the Republican Party about […] how to repair the damage", Bolton told MSNBC on Monday.
"And while I think the damage is considerable, I think it can be repaired, and it should be repaired. And it should be — from the purely limited perspective of the party, it should be the highest priority going forward", he stressed.
Bolton slammed the US president as an "aberration in American politics", and warned the Republican Party not "to attribute Trump to everybody else".
"To try and blame everybody else, I think, is simply more Washington politics. The focus here should be on the real problem, the centre of the problem, and that's Donald Trump", the ex-national security adviser argued.
When asked about the Republicans who supported Trump's 3 November presidential election fraud claims, including Josh Hawley and Ted Cruz, Bolton said that he doesn't "see any reason why they shouldn't be held accountable".
'Zero Chance' of Trump Stepping Down, Bolton Says
The remarks come a few days after Bolton told the UK's Channel 4 that Trump should resign, although "there is absolutely zero chance" of POTUS doing so.
The ex-adviser made it clear that he is neither thrilled with efforts by House Democrats to invoke the 25th Amendment nor moves to draw up impeachment articles against Trump. Bolton hinted instead that Democrats should effectively let things play out until Joe Biden's inauguration on 20 January.
"I'm not really all that concerned that he's going to do much in any sphere. I think we'd all be better if he got on Air Force One and flew to Florida and spent the next 12 days golfing. I don't think we should overestimate the dangers here", Bolton said.
House Democrats earlier called for Trump to be removed through Section Four of the 25th Amendment, which would require US Vice President Mike Pence and the majority of Trump's Cabinet to agree he is unfit for office.
In another development, a sole article of impeachment against Trump was introduced in the US House of Representatives on Monday, charging the president with "willfully inciting violence against the government of the United States".
The US president has repeatedly slammed Bolton since POTUS dismissed him in September 2019 following failed negotiations between Washington and the Taliban.
June 2020 saw the publication of Bolton's book titled "The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir", which describes his time in the Trump administration and paints POTUS as a president who was easily manipulated by the leaders of China, Russia, Turkey, and even North Korea. Trump described the book as "a compilation of lies and made-up stories", suggesting it was an attempt to get revenge for Bolton's sacking.
