Gingrich: John Bolton Would Be Secretary of State
Could Be Back: If elected, Newt Gingrich says he wants to bring back controversial ex-U.N. Ambassador John Bolton as his Secretary of State. Image by getty images
Presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich said that, if elected, he would appoint John Bolton to be his Secretary of State. The hawkish Bolton served as America’s United Nations Ambassador under President George W. Bush.
Gingrich, whose poll numbers have risen sharply in recent weeks, also said that moving the U.S. Embassy from Israel to Jerusalem would be one of his first moves upon taking the presidential oath. Gingrich was among the GOP contenders who spoke Wednesday at a candidates forum, hosted by the Republican Jewish Coalition.
At the event, Mitt Romney, who has long been considered a front runner in the race, blasted President Obama’s Middle East policy, saying that the president “seems to be more generous to our enemies than to our friends” in the region. He also said that the prospect of a nuclear Iran means that “ultimately, the regime change” there would be necessary.
A message from our editor-in-chief Jodi Rudoren
We're building on 127 years of independent journalism to help you develop deeper connections to what it means to be Jewish today.
With so much at stake for the Jewish people right now — war, rising antisemitism, a high-stakes U.S. presidential election — American Jews depend on the Forward's perspective, integrity and courage.
— Jodi Rudoren, Editor-in-Chief
