I saw him on TV somewhere in the States during the convention in 2016

He saw he had hit something, so he kept repeating it and the crowd was shouting it back at him. One could have wished for one of Kim Jong Un's missiles to pay its friends a visit at that particular moment. It was hard to watch. In another era, they would have been yelling "Duce, Duce" or "Sieg Heil, Sieg Heil!"

No political affiliations are stated in the book

But from the attitude expressed, he certainly sounded like the Ivy League (superficially-) educated William Buckley type Republican. The author, though American himself, hated the place and moved his family to the UK.

In the book, the Major later orders Nicholai tortured, disfigured, and tossed into solitary for three years until the CIA decides his skills are needed. After completing what the CIA asked of him, Nicholai disappears, and the major later meets a violent "accidental" demise, which it is obvious Nicholai has engineered.

It's a LOT easier to say than it is to write! n/t