I personally think we were where we needed to be in AFG and Syria. Using a few thousand SOF forces in a holding action is the best use of our personnel and budget. Nation building is ridiculous unless it is of such criticality that you are willing to spend 2 generations there and essentially colonize the place like Germany and Japan. Most of our engagements fail because decision makers always try to economize with forces or they care about global perception. If it is super critical then you go all out, dominate the battlefield and assume full control in rebuilding. If its not critical you go with the lightest footprint possible and just use SOF to keep the opposition from coalescing.
I agree. The type of engagement with 4k SOF in Syria was perfect for a modern day conflict. We support an allied force with limited risk of putting our forces in harms way. Leaving the Kurds high and dry is a significant concern. Walking away from allied local forces like we did in the first Gulf War was a genesis what would become ISIS. These were minority populations that we encouraged to rise up against Sadam that were abandoned to be butchered after we pulled back to Kuwait. We also halted our support for early versions of the Taliban after secretly supporting them against the Russians which left a gap.
I don’t agree with the leftists on much of anything, but I do agree with them on this: why do we debate more regarding withdrawing troops than inserting them in a foreign country?
Bush negotiated SOFA timetable for US troop withdrawal years before Obama pulled them out. Trump didn’t tell anyone. That’s the problem every US and allied commander has with his decision.
I kind of prefer that to our usual method of announcing our plans to the entire world, including our enemies.
Because surprise is not a critical element to sustainment operations. It wouldn't have made one bit of difference to give our allies a heads up and a 6 month lead. There are some things that make sense to keep secret, there are some things that don't. "I'm going to abandon you right away" is not a tactic that will work well in the long run.
Trump's most lasting legacy will be the damage he's done to enduring relationships with our allies. The trust we have with our allies that has endured through administrations (D and R) has been irreparably harmed, I fear.
Said as if the US has gotten no advantage in the relationship. Woe is the USA. We are so unfortunate.
Nah...I'm just not willing to pay for a handjob then complain that I didn't get any penetration all the while claiming I got no benefit. That's reality vs. some contrived narrative.
I am thinking all the workers who got screwed by deals with our " friends" would disagree with you. losing a job is more than a hand job. I feel sorry for your wife if that is how you think.
Well since you live there I can see why you thought that. BTW I just learned Germany taxes Christians and wants to tax muslims too.
USA. Security agreements and access to the US market were done on the backs of blue collar workers. An Indian project director (in India) told me in October he respected Trump for sticking up for workers, and wasn’t troubled about the ruffling of feathers among allies. The Trump haters apparently care more about our image vs helping blue collar workers.
mc The Trump haters are so hateful there is NOTHING Trump could do or has done that helps Americans that outweighs their hatred.
Yeah, it's gone beyond ridiculous and you can't blame it all on libs either. Some of my FB friends are Never Trumpers and the goofiness is beyond amazing. I can understand not liking Trump on a personal level but if you don't understand the good things he's doing you're thinking with your emotions instead of your brain.
Trump found a way to make sure the Coast Guard got paid. " Concerned about U.S. Coast Guard forces losing a paycheck in the partial government shutdown, President Trump personally urged his team to find a solution that would allow the administration to make this week’s $75 million payroll, according to officials. Trump stepped in on Wednesday, calling on top lawyers and staffers to determine if the Coast Guard could make payroll despite being included in the shutdown that has impacted about 25 percent of the government, including the Department of Homeland Security, which houses the Coast Guard. Military personnel under the Department of Defense are not included in the shutdown, because their appropriations were approved earlier in Congress. Officials said that Trump was keen to find a “way we can fix this” as news media stories about the Coast Guardsmen's plight started to pile up. At his urging, the Office of Management and Budget, DHS and the Coast Guard determined that the rules governing pay to Coast Guard forces requires it be made through the end of the year. To make it, the lawyers said that unused funding could be tapped for pay. The service had a bit more than the needed $75 million left over from its past continuing resolution appropriation, enough to make this month’s last payroll check. “The president is trying to make the shutdown as painless as possible for workers, and this case proved it,” said an official. The administration also sped up check writing in other cases and was able to deliver this week a payroll check to furloughed federal employees for time worked up to the shutdown, which began Dec. 22." Trump personally intervened to pay Coast Guard in shutdown
