Popular Senator Becomes Donald Trump’s New Foreign Policy Adviser

Thursday, Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump announced U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) would serve as chairman of his National Security Advisory Committee.

Sessions, who has advised the GOP front-runner on issues such as trade and immigration, endorsed Trump on Sunday. Sessions has been on the Armed Services Committee for almost 20 years and is chairman of the Strategic Forces Subcommittee.

“It is an honor to have Jeff as a member of the team,” Trump said. “I have such great respect for him, and I look forward to working with him on the issues most important to Americans.”

Sessions discussed the role he would play for the Trump campaign in detail:

“I am grateful for the opportunity to recommend and facilitate discussions among exceptional and experienced American military and diplomatic leaders to share insight and advice with Donald Trump, regardless of their political views.

“Mr. Trump and the American people know our country needs a clear-eyed foreign policy rooted in the national interest. We need to understand the limits of our ability to intervene successfully in other nations. It is time for a healthy dose of foreign policy realism. In the Middle East, this means forming partnerships based on shared interests, not merely overthrowing regimes in the dangerous attempt to plant democracies.

“We must also combat the refugee crisis by creating regional safe zones, rather than depopulating the region by migration. The only path to long-term stability and resolution of this humanitarian crisis for the United States and our European allies is to work toward the safe return of migrants to their home countries, as Mr. Trump has noted. This strategy will also protect our own national security.

“A national-interest foreign policy, combined with a military second to none, stands in contrast to interventionist ideas that could enmesh us further in the region’s chaos. After over a decade of war and conflict, this country has a host of smart, experienced and proven leaders. That wisdom must be sought.

“These meetings will be the beginning of a process that Mr. Trump has called for and which he believes must result in a clear and realistic bipartisan global strategy that will guide our nation for years to come.”