Eli Lake, Columnist

Why This Neocon Spy Chief Is Advising Team Trump

Former CIA director James Woolsey doesn't like Trump's style, but he'll help out anyway.

September 19, 2016 at 7:01 PM UTC

Eli Lake is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering national security and foreign policy. He was the senior national security correspondent for the Daily Beast and covered national security and intelligence for the Washington Times, the New York Sun and UPI.

On point.
Photographer: Gustavo Caballero

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While most Republican politicians have accepted their party's nominee, Donald Trump, the tribe of policy intellectuals and journalists known as neoconservatives have been, for the most part, admirable holdouts.

It's easy to understand why. Trump has accused George W. Bush of lying the country into the Iraq War. He has adopted the old slogan of pre-Pearl Harbor neutralists, "America First." Trump lavishes praise on Russian strongman Vladimir Putin.