Mini-thread: 1/ There is no contradiction between Bolton’s book and the three Generals’ account to @JeffreyGoldberg. I shouldn’t have to spell this out, but I will. After @realDonaldTrump poured scorn on @USMC war dead, none of the generals were at liberty to admit this.

2/ It would be an obvious threat to United States national security for the world and America’s military to know the extent of Trump’s cowardice and contempt when there were still two years to go in his term of office, and a complicit @SenateGOP who would never remove him.

3/ General Kelly was the Chief of Staff. And he was the ONLY THING preventing @realDonaldTrump from actually ditching @NATO. His remaining in a post he must have detested was far more important than “owning” Trump for a three day media cycle. Sorry; it just was. cc @billmcraven

4/ As Dunford, Kelly and Fuentes arranged to honor the US Marine Corps dead, they needed some - indeed ANY - excuse for @realDonaldTrump’s abhorrent behavior. They could not tell the truth without endangering the entire Western alliance, including America, re its military.

5/ There is no excuse related to @realDonaldTrump that he would allow because he is a clinical narcissist. They could not say he was ill. Logic dictates they had to say that Trump *could not go*, that he was prevented from going, even though he was not.

6/ Therefore, Kelly and Fuentes, clearly another source to the Atlantic, jumped on the grenade, and gave the excuse that Marine One could not fly in the rain. Whilst clearly BS, it was better than saying “Our Commander in Chief thinks dead Marines are losers”

7/ Again, I take the point about telling the truth, but I speak fluent politics and often you simply cannot tell the truth and keep your nation safe. John Kelly did his duty. We remain a member of NATO. And the three generals fired at Trump at the RIGHT time - re-election.

8/ All John Bolton’s tedious book reveals is that he had NO PART of the discussions Dunford, Kelly and Fuentes had with @realDonaldTrump. Bolton was NOT “in the Room Where it Happened” and the Generals had rightful contempt for Bolton and didn’t read him in.

9/9 John Bolton’s Badly-Written Book of Boring simply describes the official excuse that Gen. Kelly and Fuentes (a veteran of @USCoastguard) were FORCED to come up with instead of having to say “The President thinks dead Marines are suckers, he can’t be bothered.” Ends.