45 orders troops out of Syria

We have always thought that if the investigations into all of his misdeeds heated up too much that he would start a war somewhere as a distraction. Looks as if he is rather using the military in reverse to distract from all the damning evidence coming out against him lately. I refer to the on-going Russia investigation, the postponement of Flynn's sentencing and the illegalities surrounding his "foundation" among many others.

Again, every day is like a year in this absurd and dangerous administration.




Planning is underway for a "full" and "rapid" withdrawal of US troops from Syria, a US defense official told CNN Wednesday.

The decision, which would be a reversal from previously stated US policy, was made by President Donald Trump, who has long signaled his desire to get out of Syria, the official added.
On Wednesday morning, the President tweeted, "we have defeated ISIS in Syria, my only reason for being there during the Trump Presidency."
Even though the US will continue to maintain troops in Iraq with the capability of launching strikes into Syria, a US withdrawal of ground forces would fulfill a major goal of Syria, Iran and Russia and risks diminishing US influence in the region.
The US has about 2,000 troops on the ground in the country, where they are primarily training local forces to combat ISIS. The US-backed and Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces have had some recent success against the terror group and are on the cusp of capturing the last major town held by ISIS east of the Euphrates.
Estimates vary as to how many ISIS fighters are left in Syria. In the town of Hajin, the terror group's last redoubt, the coalition estimated some 2,000 ISIS fighters were present. But a Defense Department inspector general report put the number of ISIS members in Syria and Iraq as high as 30,000.

https://www.cnn.com/2018/12/19/politics/us-syria-withdrawal/index.html

othershoe1030 wrote:
On Wednesday morning, the President tweeted, "we have defeated ISIS in Syria, my only reason for being there during the Trump Presidency."

Another bald-faced lie.

When your entire base is made up of brainwashed, trusting idiot toddlers who'll believe anything, the impulse to lie must be overwhelming. So Trump is taking advantage of 'em by seeing how much complete crap he can feed 'em. Why not? They'll believe it. He's not even putting in the work to construct viable lies anymore. Why work on your magic skills when the audience is a bunch of three year olds who can't figure out the tricks anyway?

I'll be surprised if the leftist talkingpoint isn't that this is a gift to putin.

Guess the Kurds are just screwed, then, if we leave. That'll send a great lesson to our allies -- "Back the United States and when they get everything they want, they'll leave you to be slaughtered."

Anybody still making excuses for this president needs to eat a gun.

PkrBum wrote:I'll be surprised if the leftist talkingpoint isn't that this is a gift to putin.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/russia-blesses-us-troop-withdrawal-from-syria/ar-BBRbLgJ?li=BBnb7Kz

using the military in reverse to distract

Perceptive

I have been spending the last twenty years advocating that we need to get out of Korea, reduce our manpower and our expense on bases in Europe, create a new military paradigm which evolves from the seventy year paradigm where America must be the first line of defense, I wanted America out of the middle east with our kids, and I wanted gigantic cuts in the military. However, the Kurds will be destroyed by the turks.....and those folks have been the most loyal allies america has in the middle east....because they are landlocked and a target who depends on diplomatic protection.....but Turkey will simply invade Syria and massacre and take them out. I want us out, but not before there is a lock tight guarantee that we are not going to see Turkey repeat horrible ethnic cleansing.

And you don't think the same sort of thing would have happened in South Korea if we had pulled out?

dumpcare wrote:

PkrBum wrote:I'll be surprised if the leftist talkingpoint isn't that this is a gift to putin.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/russia-blesses-us-troop-withdrawal-from-syria/ar-BBRbLgJ?li=BBnb7Kz

That didn't take long.

I wonder if this is related:

Trump’s Treasury lifts sanctions on Russian companies targeted over 2016 election interference

The Trump administration will lift sanctions on companies owned by a Russian oligarch who was targeted over interference in the 2016 election, reports Bloomberg.

Sanctions will be lifted on Rusal, En+ Group Plc and JSC EuroSibEnergo, according to a letter sent to Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) by Trump’s Treasury secretary.

Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska, a close Putin ally, will cut his ownership stake below 50 percent, according to the agreement.

“These companies have committed to significantly diminish Deripaska’s ownership and sever his control,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in the statement. “The companies will be subject to ongoing compliance and will face severe consequences if they fail to comply.”

Congress can block the lifting of sanctions, otherwise, they will take effect in 30 days, the Treasury Department said in a statement Wednesday.

The sanctions on Rusal, the world’s second-biggest aluminum company, had caused chaos in the worldwide market for the metal.

As the New York Times reported, Deripaska is “portrayed as little more than a thug by his critics and suspected by United States officials of having ties to Russian organized crime.”

Former Trump campaign boss Paul Manafort was among Deripaska’s clients before being sent to prison after admitting to a number of felonies.

https://www.rawstory.com/2018/12/trumps-treasury-lifts-sanctions-russian-companies-targeted-2016-election-inference/

PkrBum wrote:I'll be surprised if the leftist talkingpoint isn't that this is a gift to putin.

I don't know what the talking points of other "leftists" might be. It probably is a gift to putin.
As far as I'm concerned, we need to exit  the whole damned area. 2000 troops is just enough of a military force to get wiped out easily and drag us into another World War.
I know there are humanitarian issues, and there are humanitarian issues all over the world. It's sad, It's tragic. It's horrible to see small children killed.
It's even MORE horrible when it's our government allowing a 7 year old girl to die of dehydration. And quite frankly, we don't have any moral high ground to pontificate from anymore.
Migrants to our nation should be treated decently, given a chance at citizenship, and welcomed. Our grandparents were. But we cannot take care of all the evil on the planet with only being 13% of the world's population.Our own act has to get straight first, on the Mexican border and in places like Puerto Rico.We can't claim responsibility for all the evil in the world by saying  we're the world's peacekeepers-the world is a big, ugly fucking place. We need to sweep up our own floors first.
Calling for an exit from Syria and agreeing to the new criminal justice bill today are the first couple of things Trump has done right since he walked into that office. That's what this "Leftist" thinks anyway.

bigdog wrote:It probably is a gift to putin.

Is it a gift, or is it a blackmail payment? That's what worries this liberal.

I'm sure it's a blackmail payment. It's stupid for him to pay it though, if that's the only purpose. That's because he's well on the way to being "found out" by the Mueller team, and there's nothing Russia can do to him or for him now.

I want this man gone.....he is now entering areas where people are going to get killed and this traitor has just stabbed our ally in the back, and that is Putin's goal to weaken our alliances. This is stupid. Russians bought and paid for people in our government to betray this nation, but now American kids are on the line.

2seaoat wrote:I want this man gone.....

You and I and untold millions of others, both here and abroad.

RealLindaL wrote:

bigdog wrote:It probably is a gift to putin.

Is it a gift, or is it a blackmail payment? That's what worries this liberal.

I think we need to face one hard fact: Vladimir Putin is the de facto President of the United States. Trump's just the marketing mascot to help sell it. And conservatives have full-on bought into this because they're stupid and so easily-led I'm surprised border collies aren't massing up herds of them just for laughs. Just brutally stupid.

Trump -- be it for pay-off or just out of his ego's pathetic need to have tough-guy Putin keep saying "nice things" -- is acting more in the interest of a foreign adversary than he is in his own. Even a lot of Trump-loyal Republicans are having to admit that now.

On top of it all, North Korea just took advantage of Trump being "in love" with Kim to hand him a great big go-stuff-yourself: https://wtvr.com/2018/12/20/north-korea-says-it-will-not-denuclearize-until-the-us-eliminates-nuclear-threat/ You didn't have to be Nostradamus to see that one coming. But, of course, Trump bought it, and he'll keep defending it, because he needs the North Korea thing to look like a "win" and he knows his stunningly-idiotic base will buy anything he says. They're children who like to be told stories.



As for the "talking points" bullshit, that's the kind of thing a desperate moron calls the obvious when he wants to try to dismiss a legitimate (and pretty obviously valid) argument. It's just an attempt to herd off an inescapable conclusion so he can pretend it's something "cooked up." It's like saying, "Ha, I bet liberals will try to claim that Trump's $130,000 cash Christmas present to Stormy Daniels was a bribe. That's just how those wacky liberals are with their ridiculous talking points." It's a nice try but an obviously stupid and transparent game for someone too cowardly to address what's actually happening.

I agree that the Trump followers out here in the public are either dumb as dirt or totally brainwashed by their religious leaders. But I don't agree that the Republicans in Congress operate out of te same stupidity. They are power hungry and don't give a damn about this country. They saw Trump as a way to ride into an all Republican government and couldn't care less who or what he really was. They knew and they still know.
They also know it won't last forever, so the next two years will be the worst period in our history of congressmen taking all the lobbyists money and all the favors they can until they are voted out.

Zsomething, I notice you provided a link to wtvr.com (Channel 6) in Richmond. Are you from there originally? I was born and raised in Richmond and my late father was the long-time attorney on retainer for WTVR, way back in the era when they sought approval for their huge TV tower (built before your time, probably, though it's still standing). The original station licensee/owner was Wilbur Havens, and I still have home movies of dad and "Mr. Havens" at Havens' vacation place somewhere in the Tidewater (forget where, exactly). Anyway, as I said, couldn't help noticing and, of course, wondering. Wow, that brought back memories.

othershoe1030 wrote:45 has given Putin everything he ever wanted

https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/08/politics/treasury-russia-crimea-sanctions/index.html