Clinton's former CIA director, Jim Woolsey, joins Trump campaign as senior advisor

Former CIA Director Jim Woolsey, who served under President Bill Clinton in the early years of his first term, joined Donald Trump's campaign as a senior advisor on Monday.

The Trump campaign touted Woolsey's decision to cross party lines after working for Democrats in the past. The press release issued by the campaign on Monday included a statement from Woolsey in which he said he looked forward to advising the GOP nominee "on the urgent need to reinvest in and modernize our military in order to confront the challenges of the 21st century."

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Woolsey, who led the CIA from 1993 until 1995, said in an interview that aired on CNN on Monday that he supports the GOP nominee for president, but made it clear that he sees himself as an advisor more than a political operative.

"Sure," he said when asked if he supported Trump's bid for the White House, adding "I'm not in the business of going around dispensing endorsements."

Woolsey has worked with other Republican candidates in recent years. He advised one-time Trump running mate contender Newt Gingrich during his 2012 bid for the White House, and worked with Sen. John McCain on his 2008 campaign for president.

The former CIA director has been at least somewhat critical of Trump in the past, expressing concern when Trump said that more countries should have access to nuclear weapons.

"I would just as soon not have a situation where more and more countries are getting nuclear weapons and crisis [in the Middle East] could go really haywire rather than just be an angry confrontation," he said during an interview in March.

Woolsey also criticized Trump's proposed ban on Muslims entering the U.S. as a "bad decision."

But Woolsey's criticism was targeted at Hillary Clinton and not Donald Trump in the statement released by the campaign on Monday:

Since Secretary Clinton left the State Department we have learned that she demonstrated a complete lack of understanding and an inability to lead the agency she headed in such a way as to maintain its mission and security. Based on the emails thus far released we know that Secretary Clinton also lacks the ability to lead her senior managers while complying with and maintaining the basic protocols designed to protect our government's sensitive and classified information. Mr. Trump understands the magnitude of the threats we face and is holding his cards close to the vest. Bravo Zulu, Mr. Trump.