The Washington Post provided some insight into how the new Afghanistan strategy was crafted.
When Steven Bannon left the White House and returned to Breitbart News as executive chairman, he promised he’d be “going to war” for President Trump, reports the Washington Post.
Given the conservative media outlet's scathing response to Trump’s Afghanistan strategy speech, that does not appear to be what is actually happening.
Following the president’s Monday night address, in which he argued against pulling out of Afghanistan, Breitbart published a number of critical articles, notes Politico.
Headlines include, “Trump’s ‘America First’ Base Unhappy with Flip-Flop Afghanistan Speech,” and “His McMaster’s voice: Is Trump’s Afghanistan policy different from Obama?”
The first piece includes the statement, “President Trump’s 'America First' base was the biggest loser of Trump’s speech on Afghanistan Monday night,” and noted the address, “was the first since the departure of Chief Strategist Steve Bannon and confirmed the fears…the President would revert to the same old fare that Americans had voted to reject in November.”
That article also included a number of tweets from those opposed to the decision to amplify engagement, including two from blogger Mike Cernovich, who wrote, “Congratulations to President McMaster,” and called Trump’s son-in-law “General Jared.”
During his Monday address, Trump did acknowledge his changed point of view on how to best handle the long-enduring war in Afghanistan.
“My original instinct was to pull out -- and, historically, I like following my instincts," Trump said. "But all my life I've heard that decisions are much different when you sit behind the desk in the Oval Office.”
Following a long study of all available options, Trump said he came to a number of conclusions, including, “The men and women who serve our nation in combat deserve a plan for victory. They deserve the tools they need, and the trust they have earned, to fight and to win.”
