Still, reasonable people could disagree over whether the mainstream foreign policy folks like Mattis or McMaster could sway Trump when it was important. The real reason Glasser’s story is so devastating, however, is that it undercuts the influence of Mattis, Tillerson and McMaster going forward. They now all sound like Nikki Haley, who is going around sounding thoroughly mainstream but also not necessarily having any influence over foreign policy. Mattis, McMaster and Tillerson lose influence over Trump. And yet, in its own way, it’s a devastating indictment of the influence of Trump’s mainstream policy advisers.

Source: Washington Post June 06, 2017 10:50 UTC