Or there is a shortage of well qualified elite to fill necessary positions.
Rubbish!
If you really think that that is the explanation, why didn't Trump or President Kushner say as much? Together they have hired and fired more incompetent and dishonest Cabinet-level and other high-ranking staff than any president in history. Sadly, the ones they fired fastest were the handful who displayed a measure of competence!
Trump is slothful or incompetent—you choose. No other explanation is sufficient to account for his hiring a monster like John Bolton.