As Trump brags of success in Syria claiming that he is bringing our troops home, the reality on the ground is quite different. U.S. military officials tell NBC’s Richard Engel they are “ashamed” and “sickened.”
And they are also not coming home.
Massive attacks underway against the kurds in northern syria. No ceasefire. Total nonsenses there is. US military officials tell me they are ashamed, “sickened.†It’s cold now outside. What about the families, and kids, out of their homes? @OARichardEngel #AmericanBetrayal
— Richard Engel (@RichardEngel) November 17, 2019
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Trump touts his withdrawal as a success to bring our troops home, but they are not coming home. In typical Trump administration fashion, this claim has several problems wrapped in layers of confusion and who knows.
A. Many of the troops are not going home, but are leaving Syria to go to western Iraq.
B. As MSNBC’s Steve Bennen pointed out (link above), Trump’s “entire withdrawal plan appears to be in doubt.” Also, some troops are being held back to… guard the oil.
On November 17th, at least nine people were killed as Russian airstrikes hit Syria’s Idlib province according to a war monitor for the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
On November 13th, Trump answered questions with Turkish President Erdogan at the White House and said Europe should be paying for Syrian refugees instead of Turkey, “You know, I think that, frankly, Europe should be paying for this (Syrian refugees) to a large extent. As of this moment, Turkey’s been paying for most of it.”
On November 14th, Putin said the Kremlin still had work to do in Idlib, “Yes, many objectives have been reached, but not at all every objective.”
If we are not fighting for freedom or were not fighting for freedom if we can’t be counted on to be an example of the best deeds for human rights, it no doubt will cause great shame for the people on the ground who thought their mission had a higher purpose.
Trump has revealed to be true what used to be treated as a left wing conspiracy: The United States was really in several areas of the world for oil, not for human rights or to take down terrorist organizations. Trump doesn’t seem to understand that it’s hard to tell idealistic patriots that they are fighting for rich men to get richer rather than for democracy and freedom.
Instead of making our military great again, Trump is crashing morale with his foreign policy that elevates dictators while spitting on freedom and justice.
Donald Trump has decimated the brand of the United States.
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