Michael George Glen Waltz (born January 31, 1974) is an American politician, businessman, author, and former Army Special Forces officer who is the 29th and current U.S. National Security Advisor.

Waltz received four Bronze Stars while serving in the Special Forces during multiple combat tours in Afghanistan, the Middle East, and Africa.

He served in the Bush administration as a defense policy director in the Pentagon and as counterterrorism advisor to Vice President Dick Cheney.

Waltz was considered one of Congress's most hawkish members with regard to China, believing that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is in a cold war with the U.S.

[1][2] He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in international studies from the Virginia Military Institute and was commissioned as an Armor Officer in the U.S.

[10] Upon becoming the National Security Advisor under President Donald Trump, Waltz retired from the Army Special Forces at the rank of colonel.

[18] In December 2020, Waltz was one of 126 Republican members of the House of Representatives to sign an amicus brief in support of Texas v. Pennsylvania, a lawsuit filed at the United States Supreme Court contesting the results of the 2020 presidential election, in which Joe Biden defeated[19] incumbent Donald Trump.

The Supreme Court declined to hear the case on the basis that Texas lacked standing under Article III of the Constitution to challenge the results of an election held by another state.

[26] On July 29, 2024, Waltz was announced as one of seven Republican members of a bipartisan task force investigating the attempted assassination of Donald Trump.

[33] Further, Waltz directed the Department of Defense to track foreign talent recruitment programs that pose a threat to the United States, particularly as a response to Chinese Communist Party efforts to infiltrate American universities.

[33] Waltz also sponsored legislation[34] to ensure the federal Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) does not invest in Chinese or Russian markets.

In 2020, Waltz voted for the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2021, which would prevent the president from withdrawing soldiers from Afghanistan without congressional approval.

As a result of PAE acquiring Metis in 2020, Waltz had personally realized capital gains in the range of $5-25 million, according to disclosure releases.

[38][39] In January 2023, Waltz and Representative Dan Crenshaw introduced a bill to seek authorization to use US military force to "put us at war with the cartels" in Mexico.

[45] The PACT ACT which expanded VA benefits to veterans exposed to toxic chemicals during their military service, received a "nay" from Waltz.

[69] Shortly after becoming National Security Advisor, Waltz would reverse his previous stance supporting a ban on TikTok in the United States.

He assessed that Afghanistan could be won through slow cultural conversion by unconventional forces, described as "multiple generations of winning hearts and minds", and anticipated 100 years before such objectives could be achieved, saying:“We are in a war of ideas and we are fighting an ideology.

Uh, and you know, I think we're in for a long haul, and I think our nation's leadership needs to begin telling the American people, 'I'm sorry, we don't have a choice; we're 15 years into what is going to be a multi-generational war because we're talking about defeating an idea.'

In an op-ed for Fox News, he predicted that a return to Afghanistan was inevitable, and viewed withdrawal as a temporary act that would "decimate" local allies and civilians, saying "thousands will die".

[82] In a 2024 The Economist op-ed written together with Matthew Kroenig, Waltz argued for winding down conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine to free up military assets needed to confront China.