Former McCain adviser: Trump is 'much more reckless than Sarah Palin — and that's quite a standard'

One of the 50 former Republican foreign policy officials to sign a scathing letter this week declaring Donald Trump “dangerous” says she would have trusted U.S. national security with Sarah Palin more than with the GOP nominee.

“I think it’s illustrative that I would have trusted Sarah Palin in that position but not Donald Trump,” Kori Schake told Yahoo Global News Anchor Katie Couric in an interview Tuesday, a day after the letter was published.

Schake, who served on President George W. Bush’s National Security Council and was an adviser to Arizona Sen. John McCain’s 2008 presidential campaign, said Trump is “much more reckless than Sarah Palin — and that’s quite a standard.”

“None of us will vote for Donald Trump,” read the letter, published Monday by the New York Times. “From a foreign policy perspective, Donald Trump is not qualified to be President and Commander in Chief. Indeed, we are convinced that he would be a dangerous President and would put at risk our country’s national security and well-being.”

Others who signed the letter include former Homeland Security Secs. Thomas Ridge and Michael Chertoff; former NSA and CIA Director Michael V. Hayden; ex-Deputy Secretaries of State John D. Negroponte and Robert B. Zoellick; and Eric S. Edelman, who served as Vice President Dick Cheney’s national security adviser and was a top aide to Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

“All of us who signed the letter had worked with presidents and understand the kind of temperament that is calm and deliberative in crisis,” Schake explained to Couric. “And Donald trump doesn’t have that temperament.”

Schake added: “We’re genuinely concerned his erratic statements and behavior are already damaging to the United States.”

The Trump campaign dismissed the letter and its signatories late Monday.

“The names on this letter are the ones the American people should look to for answers on why the world is a mess,” Trump said in a statement. “And we thank them for coming forward so everyone in the country knows who deserves the blame for making the world such a dangerous place. They are nothing more than the failed Washington elite looking to hold onto their power, and it’s time they are held accountable for their actions.”

The stinging assessment of Trump’s national security proposals came on the heels of several apparent foreign policy gaffes, most notably the GOP nominee’s vow that Russian President Vladimir Putin would not invade Ukraine, despite the fact that Putin seized the Crimean Peninsula in 2014.

Trump, their letter stated, has “demonstrated repeatedly that he has little understanding” of the nation’s “vital national interests, its complex diplomatic challenges, its indispensable alliances and the democratic values.” What’s more, the real estate mogul and former “Celebrity Apprentice” host “has shown no interest in educating himself” on crucial foreign policy issues.

“He is unable or unwilling to separate truth from falsehood,” the letter added. “He does not encourage conflicting views. He lacks self-control and acts impetuously. He cannot tolerate personal criticism. He has alarmed our closest allies with his erratic behavior. All of these are dangerous qualities in an individual who aspires to be president and commander in chief, with command of the U.S. nuclear arsenal.”

In March, more than 100 national security advisers signed a similar letter blasting Trump as a “fundamentally dishonest” candidate who “would use the authority of his office to act in ways that make America less safe.”

Monday’s missive was even more blunt.

“We understand that many Americans are profoundly frustrated with the federal government and its inability to solve pressing domestic and international problems,” the letter concludes. “We also know that many have doubts about Hillary Clinton, as do many of us. But Donald Trump is not the answer to America’s daunting challenges and to this crucial election. We are convinced that in the Oval Office, he would be the most reckless President in American history.”

Several high-profile names were noticeably absent from the list of signatories, including Condoleezza Rice.

But Schake, who counts the former secretary of state as one of her mentors, hinted that Rice may speak out about Trump’s foreign policy before the election.

“I think we’re very early in the electoral process,” she said. “I wouldn’t be surprised to hear Condi and other Republican leaders make their views known closer to the election.”

Schake also admitted she was disappointed that McCain endorsed Trump for president after the real estate mogul questioned his war-hero status.

“I understand the sense of loyalty John feels toward the party’s candidate and the respect John feels for the voters who nominated Donald Trump,” she said. “But I think what Donald Trump said about John McCain, like what Donald Trump said about the Gold Star family a couple weeks ago is genuinely outrageous.”