John Bolton Says Trump’s Too Lazy and Nihilistic to Be a Fascist: ‘Not Capable of’ Having a Philosophy 

John Bolton, who served as Donald Trump’s national security advisor, said the former president cannot be fascist in the true sense of the word because he lacks the requisite drive and political ethos.

On Tuesday, The Atlantic published a report in which Ret. Gen. John Kelly, Trump’s former chief of staff, confirmed on the record that the ex-president once wondered why Kelly couldn’t be more like “Hitler’s generals.” Hours later, the New York Times released audio of an interview with Kelly, where he said Trump believes fascism “would work better” than American democracy, and the ex-chief of staff also said Trump qualifies as a fascist. The comments echo those of Ret. Gen. Mark Milley, Trump’s former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who said the ex-president is a “fascist to the core.” Also on Tuesday, the Times released audio of Kelly claiming Trump said Hitler “did some good things.”

On Tuesday’s edition of The Source on CNN, host Kaitlan Collins asked Bolton to weigh in.

“Ambassador Bolton, when you hear John Kelly say that Donald Trump meets the definition of a fascist, do you agree with that?” she asked.

Bolton replied that “it’s extremely important” that Kelly has come forward so publicly about his disturbing interactions with Trump. However, he explained why the former president is not a fascist:

I think it’s a mistake to get into a controversy over whether Trump meets the definition of fascist or not. I think his behavior alone is troubling enough. To be a fascist, you have to have a philosophy. Trump’s not capable of that. You know, Adolf Hitler wrote a profoundly troubling book called Mein Kampf – “My Struggle.” Donald Trump couldn’t even read his way all the way through that book, let alone write something like it.

I’m not trying to understate the dangers of a Trump presidency. I think it’s important to focus on the dangers themselves.

Bolton went on to say that the best way to view Trump is through a courecall how Rex Tillerson, Trump’s secretary of State, referred to his boss as “a fucking moron.” The former ambassador also cited the late conservative pundit Charles Krauthammer, who said he erred when likening Trump to a 10-year-old because he was more like a one-year-old.

Watch above via CNN.