Following the removal of Mike Waltz as national security adviser on Thursday evening, President Trump appointed a successor who adopts a less aggressive stance on Russia but remains fully aligned with the administration’s approach to Iran, Gaza, and China.
The president found a fitting candidate close at hand.
By elevating Marco Rubio to the position of top foreign policy adviser within the West Wing, while he continues to serve as secretary of state, Trump has entrusted a former political competitor who has spent the initial months of the administration as a devoted international emissary and consistent proponent of the president’s policies.
Rubio is now positioned to help oversee the administration’s foreign policy operations from both the White House and the State Department, even as Steve Witkoff, a long-time confidant of the president, retains his role as chief negotiator focused on resolving the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza and negotiating a nuclear agreement with Iran.
Leslie Vinjamuri, director of the U.S. and the Americas Program at Chatham House in London, noted that Rubio is "willing to align closely and follow the president’s lead. Throughout this administration, loyalty to the leader and the mission has been paramount."
However, she cautioned that concentrating so much foreign policy authority in a single individual may limit the diversity of perspectives and reduce the opportunity for dissenting viewpoints or alternative advice.
“This consolidation decreases the chances of someone raising a red flag or presenting information that contradicts existing assumptions,” she explained.
