K.T. McFarland
Kathleen Troia "K.T." McFarland is President Donald Trump's (R) deputy national security advisor. She is a former national security analyst for Fox News and previously served in the Nixon, Ford, and Reagan administrations.[1][2]
Career
While studying politics at George Washington University in 1970, McFarland began working as a White House typist under former President Richard Nixon (R) and, later, as an aide to National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger. After completing her degree, McFarland worked as a research assistant for the National Security Council until 1976. She left public service in order to earn bachelor's and master's degrees from Oxford University, but returned to Washington, D.C., in 1981 as a staff member for the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee. She began a doctoral program in nuclear policy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, but did not complete a degree.[1][2][3][4]
Reagan administration
In 1981, McFarland began working as a speechwriter in the Pentagon under former President Ronald Reagan's (R) secretary of defense, Caspar Weinberger. She was promoted to the role of assistant secretary of defense for public affairs in 1983. McFarland left public service following her marriage to investment banker Alan Roberts McFarland in 1984 in order to raise her family.[1][2][3][4]
U.S. Senate campaign, 2006
McFarland campaigned for a U.S. Senate seat from New York in 2006. She was defeated in the Republican primary.[1]
Fox News
Following her U.S. Senate campaign, McFarland began working as a national security analyst for Fox News. Her contract with the network expired in the fall of 2016 following her appointment as President Donald Trump's (R) deputy national security advisor.[1][2]
Deputy national security advisor
On November 25, 2016, President Donald Trump (R) announced his selection of McFarland to serve as his deputy national security advisor.[2][5]
"I am proud that KT has once again decided to serve our country and join my national security team," said Trump in a statement. "She has tremendous experience and innate talent that will complement the fantastic team we are assembling, which is crucial because nothing is more important than keeping our people safe."[1]
As deputy national security advisor, McFarland is tasked with coordinating the federal government’s foreign policy, intelligence and national security branches.[2]
"Nobody has called foreign policy right more than President Trump, and he gets no credit for it," said McFarland in a statement. "I'm honored and humbled that he has asked me to be part of his team."[1]
Nonprofit affiliations
McFarland is a board member of The Jamestown Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that aims to "inform and educate policy makers and the broader community about events and trends in those societies which are strategically or tactically important to the United States and which frequently restrict access to such information."[4][6][7]
McFarland also serves as a distinguished advisor to the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and is a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations.[4]
Recognition
In 1985, the U.S. Department of Defense awarded McFarland the Distinguished Service Award in recognition of her work in the Reagan administration.[4]
Noteworthy events
David Petraeus audiotape, 2012
In 2012, a recording surfaced featuring a 2011 conversation between McFarland and General David Petraeus. During the conversation, McFarland claimed to be passing along a message to Petraeus from Fox News head Roger Ailes urging Petraeus to run for president. "At some point when you go to New York next you might just want to chat with Roger, and Rupert Murdoch, for that matter,” McFarland said.[2]
Ailes later declined the sincerity of the statements in the recording, claiming that he had urged McFarland to relay the message as "a joke" to Petraeus. "It sounds like she thought she was on a secret mission in the Reagan administration," said Ailes. "She was way out of line."[2]
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 CNN, "McFarland, McGahn to join Trump administration," November 25, 2016
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 Politico, "Flynn deputy raises more doubts about Trump team," December 12, 2016
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 The Atlantic, "K.T. McFarland: A Reagan Veteran in Trumpworld," December 12, 2016
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 The Jamestown Foundation, "Kathleen Troia “KT” McFarland," accessed December 16, 2016
- ↑ The Hill, "Trump picks KT McFarland for deputy national security adviser," November 25, 2016
- ↑ The Jamestown Foundation, "Support Jamestown," accessed December 16, 2016
- ↑ The Jamestown Foundation, "About us," accessed December 16, 2016
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