Keith Kellogg

Retired U.S. Army Lieutenant (Lt.) General Joseph “Keith” Kellogg served as Executive Secretary and Chief of Staff of the National Security Council, and subsequently as National Security Advisor to the Vice President in the Trump administration. Kellogg was a central figure in the formulation and execution of the Trump administration’s most controversial national security policies and responses. He was one of several foreign policy advisors on the July 25, 2019 phone call between President Trump and Ukrainian President Zelenskyy that led to the former president’s first impeachment, on which he testified to Congress, “I heard nothing wrong or improper on the call. I had and have no concerns.” Kellogg remains a dogged Trump ally and zealous defender of Trump’s extreme political rhetoric and policy agenda.

Today, Kellogg is a Fox News contributor and co-chair of the Center for American Security at America First Policy Institute (AFPI), a nonprofit think tank founded by prominent Trump administration alumni to promote President Trump’s populist policies after leaving office. AFPI’s “America First Agenda” is a pro-Trump, ultra-conservative set of policy proposals that are intended to serve as a guide for the next conservative president. AFPI advocates for extremist, anti-democratic policies and now houses an expansive state policy apparatus staffed with ex-state official election deniers.

After working for defense contractors for more than a decade, Kellogg joined the Trump campaign in March 2016 and served as a key foreign policy adviser to then-candidate Trump through November. Post-election, Kellogg was put in charge of the Department of Defense transition team, and in December 2016, Kellogg was announced as the Chief of Staff and Executive Secretary of the National Security Council. In February 2017, Kellogg served for six days as Acting National Security Advisor following Michael Flynn’s resignation. In April 2018, Kellogg was appointed as Vice President Mike Pence’s National Security Advisor, a role he held until Trump’s last days in office. Despite departing NSC, Kellogg remained an Assistant to President Trump.

Kellogg was with President Trump in the Oval Office during the January 6th attacks on the U.S. Capitol. While he urged Vice President Pence to certify the election results on the evening of January 6th, he has since abandoned Pence and come to Trump’s defense. In August 2023, Kellogg endorsed Trump over Pence in the Republican primary via a Truth Social post stating: “I must express my disappointment in his [Pence] recent actions regarding President Trump. It is not decisive leadership that we have seen from President Trump. Where President Trump is bold and unafraid to challenge the status quo, Pence has often chosen the passive route, avoiding confrontation. This lack of assertiveness combined with an overreliance on failed political consultants [] has demonstrated a laissez-faire leadership style unworthy of the presidency.” Through AFPI, Kellogg has further disparaged the January 6th indictments against Trump as that of “a thuggish and repressive State.”

Kellogg has spent the last four years advancing and advocating for Trump’s foreign policy, including with foreign officials. An illustrative set of positions and statements include:

– Proposal to drastically reorientate NATO to be a “tiered” alliance, and revoking Article 5 protections (collective defense for any attacked member) for NATO nations who fail to spend 2% of their GDP on defense.

– Proposed ultimatum for Ukraine that pressures Ukrainians to cede power and control to Russia.

– Statement conflating migrants crossing the southern border with a risk of“terrorists.”

– Limit nearly all mail-in voting and only count ballots physically received by Election Day.

One of the only generals who still supports the former president, Kellogg is pro-Trump across nearly every vertical of foreign policy, national security, and the administrative state. The Trump campaign has reportedly identified Kellogg as a candidate for a top foreign policy or national security role in a future administration.