Republican national security elites who fueled the Never Trump movement are struggling to decide whether they'd work for his administration. | AP Photo GOP national security elites agonize: Should I work for Trump? It's a dilemma few thought they'd actually face.

They have called him "fundamentally dishonest," branded his rhetoric a danger to the world, and some felt so repulsed by him that they voted for Hillary Clinton.

But now that Donald Trump has won the presidency, Republican national security elites who fueled the Never Trump movement are struggling with the question: "If he asks me, would I work for him?" And, maybe more to the point: "Would I be hurting the country if I say no?"


It's a gut-check moment that was never supposed to happen because Trump was never supposed to win. The White House, conservatives (and pretty much everyone else) had wagered, would stay in Democratic hands, leaving them out in the cold halls of think tanks and lobbying firms for another long four years.

With the GOP taking the House, the Senate and the presidency, however, the prospect of power is enticing. That being said, the main reason some say they will work for Trump is because he's a foreign policy novice who will suddenly have access to the nuclear codes and who will be taking over during an especially volatile time on the global front. Even those determined not to work for Trump say they hope he finds good people who will do so for the country's sake.

"I opposed him during the election, but I would be proud to work with him," said Jim Glassman, who served as an undersecretary of state in the George W. Bush administration. "He's got an extremely steep learning curve, and he did not have any top-tier, experienced people in this area — whatever their viewpoints — advising him during the campaign. Trump is smart enough to understand that he needs such people now, and I would strongly suspect they will work with him."

Whether Trump would hire people who've come out against him is a big question — he's known for his vindictive streak. Trump has said he is his own favorite foreign policy adviser and that he knows more than America's generals do about the Islamic State terrorist group, so some fear that even if he retains the best and brightest GOP advisers, he'll still do harm.

"The things he has said and done during the campaign, I fear he will not change much when he is sitting in the White House," said David Kramer, also a top State official under Bush, who insisted he won't join a Trump administration no matter what. "I couldn’t possibly bring myself to work for him."

Trump got off on the wrong foot with the Republican national security crowd when, during his speech announcing his candidacy, he trashed America's southern neighbor, Mexico, by saying it is sending rapists and drug dealers to the United States. His hostility to trade deals and immigration, and his seeming openness to the spread of nuclear weapons, further alarmed Republican foreign policy elites.

In March, more than 120 of them signed an open letter, one of several to come, denouncing Trump as unfit for the Oval Office. Many would go on to endorse Clinton, his Democratic rival and a former secretary of state, while others just spoke against Trump. In Washington, it was difficult to find anyone on the right who openly supported the Manhattan real estate mogul.

On Wednesday, some Never Trumpers were in such shock they refused to talk to a reporter, saying they were still trying to process what happened. Others were more sanguine, even as they admitted they had no idea what lies ahead. None admitted to having been approached by Trump for a job, but some made comparisons along the lines of the choice facing a person who sees a drunken man taking the wheel of a really nice Porsche.

Danielle Pletka, a senior vice president at the right-leaning American Enterprise Institute said many Never Trumpers may decide to wait until they see who Trump will appoint as his Cabinet secretaries.

The names that have been bandied about for secretary of state include former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.

"If somebody serious and responsible like John Bolton is secretary of state I think you’ll find a lot of people who are concerned about where Donald Trump seemed to be on a variety of issues will set aside their concerns to work with somebody in whom they have confidence," said Pletka, who said she had "no idea" what she would do if approached by a Trump administration.

Corker has expressed interest in the Foggy Bottom role in the past, but an aide said Wednesday that the Tennessee Republican and Trump "have not engaged in any conversations about specific positions in the administration since the summer." In a separate statement, Corker said he will "be glad to provide input and recommendations as needed" during the transition period.

Former Defense Intelligence Agency chief Michael Flynn and former Bush administration National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley have been rumored as potential picks for the Pentagon or another top role. GOP Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama has also been mentioned as a potential pick for the Pentagon.

Mike Pillsbury, an adviser to Trump's transition team, said he's been trying to assuage the concerns of Never Trumpers by directing people to read works by Trump allies, such as a recent piece in Foreign Policy that describes Trump's vision for Asia. Pillsbury, a former Defense Department official who's open to joining the Trump administration, said that as dozens of his fellow conservatives signed on to Never Trump missives in recent months, he's "felt very lonely."

But he argues that the president-elect has been misunderstood, and that the heat of the campaign isn't the best frame of reference to judge him. "Candidate Trump’s language has been badly misinterpreted," Pillsbury insisted, giving an example, "He hasn’t called for an end to NATO. These are rhetorical, often second-hand quotes."

One challenge for Trump is that he appears to have challenged mainstream Republican thought on a host of issues, especially trade, which might make it harder for him to find good candidates. Carlos Gutierrez, who served as secretary of commerce under Bush, said Republicans should not stop from calling out Trump on positions they deem wrong.

"We’re just talking now about how odd it is for a Republican president to be against" the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a massive trade deal, Gutierrez said. "We’re all in a state of shock. But our role now is to wish him well and to try to help him."

Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.), one of Trump’s earliest congressional endorsers, said he'd be interested in serving in a Trump administration if asked. The Marine combat veteran also predicted those who refused to endorse Trump would be left out.

“I don’t think they’re going to be brought on board, even if they wanted to be,” Hunter said. “I think that Donald trump remembers who supported him and who didn’t.”

The fallout from Trump's election is obviously reverberating well beyond Republicans. Democrats who had been hoping for political appointments in a Clinton administration are reeling from her loss and resetting their plans. Many in the civil service, too, are wondering whether they want to stay and work in a Trump administration.

"I’ve already started day drinking," said one State Department official on Wednesday afternoon. He described the scene at Foggy Bottom as funereal, and said he'd heard a lot of talk of people putting in their retirement papers.

"I think there’s going to be a lot of talk as people go through their stages of grief about it, but at the end of the day you have real life. You have mortgages and car payments and kids," the State official said. "There's also a sense of duty and service."

After a bitter campaign season that saw unusual levels of bipartisanship in foreign policy and national security circles, some on the left are now rooting for their conservative counterparts to keep Trump, and the country, on track.

"If Trump wins, Republican national security experts need to step up and serve in his administration," former U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul tweeted as the results came in. "We need you."

Jeremy Herb contributed to this report.