News

Trump pushes back against rising Syria criticism: Should be ‘no surprise’ … ‘time for others to finally fight’

December 20, 2018 | | Print Article
(Video screenshot)

A day after President Donald Trump announced that he intends to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria, he took to Twitter to push back against rising criticism from those concerned that America is abdicating its moral duty to essentially serve as the world’s police.

“Getting out of Syria was no surprise,” he tweeted Thursday morning. “I’ve been campaigning on it for years, and six months ago, when I very publicly wanted to do it, I agreed to stay longer.”

Though Trump’s presidency started with a bang when, only months in office, he ordered the bombing of a Syrian airfield after dictator Bashar Assad allegedly used chemical weapons on his own citizens, for the most part the president has been seeking to reduce — not increase — U.S. involvement.

Just last spring he withdrew funding for aid programs in northwestern Syria. Around the same time he ordered the military to begin prepping for a potential withdrawal.

“Russia, Iran, Syria & others are the local enemy of ISIS. We were doing there work. Time to come home & rebuild. #MAGA,” the president’s tweets Thursday continued.

Look:

He was right to note that ISIS is indeed the enemy of Russia, Iran and Syria. But some of Trump’s critics have noted that the U.S. is likewise the enemy of Russia and Syria.

Their specific concern is that America’s withdrawal from Syria will allow the United States’ enemies to gain a stronger foothold in the beleaguered territory.

“The withdrawal of American presence from Syria also bolsters two other adversaries to the United States, Iran and Russia,” a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers warned. “As you are aware, both Iran and Russia have used the Syrian conflict as a stage to magnify their influence in the region.”

According to Trump and those who support his decision, this is irrelevant. Opponents of America’s Syria policy have long argued that the U.S. needs to prioritize its own interests instead of interfering in parts of the world where it’s not really welcome or wanted.

HERE’S WHAT YOU’RE MISSING …

Among the critics is Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, who was one of a select few legislators who criticized the president after he launched the bombing of Syria last year.

“While we all condemn the atrocities in Syria, the United States was not attacked. The President needs congressional authorization for military action as required by the Constitution, and I call on him to come to Congress for a proper debate. Our prior interventions in this region have done nothing to make us safer, and Syria will be no different,” he argued at the time.

He, of course, is pleased by the president’s latest decision:

So are quite a few social media users.

Look:

The latter Twitter user was correct: Obama-administration-led efforts to intervene in Syria did unintentionally wind up putting U.S. weapons in the hands of terrorists.

HERE’S WHAT YOU’RE MISSING …

DONATE TO BIZPAC REVIEW

Please help us! If you are fed up with letting radical big tech execs, phony fact-checkers, tyrannical liberals and a lying mainstream media have unprecedented power over your news please consider making a donation to BPR to help us fight them. Now is the time. Truth has never been more critical!

$10
$15
$25
$50
Other
$
Success! Thank you for donating. Please share BPR content to help combat the lies.
Vivek Saxena
Latest posts by Vivek Saxena (see all)

Comment

We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.

BPR INSIDER COMMENTS

Scroll down for non-member comments or join our insider conversations by becoming a member. We'd love to have you!

Latest Articles