Quote of the Day
Political Wire by Taegan Goddard“I am shaken by the resignation of General Mattis. For what it means to our country, for the message it sends to our troops, and for the indication of what his view is of the commander-in-chief.”
— House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), quoted by The Hill.
https://politicalwire.com/2018/12/20/quote-of-the-day-2124/
House Passes Spending Bill with Wall Funding
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https://politicalwire.com/2018/12/20/house-passes-spending-bill-with-wall-funding/
U.S. to Withdraw 7,000 Troops from Afghanistan
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https://politicalwire.com/2018/12/20/u-s-to-withdraw-7000-troops-from-afghanistan/
Bonus Quote of the Day
Political Wire by Taegan Goddard“Okay, Republicans. How much longer are you going to let this farcical ‘presidency’ continue? At a time of such political, economic, and geo-strategic turbulence—both nationally and globally—are you waiting for a catastrophe to happen before acting? Disaster looms!”
— Former CIA Director John Brennan, on Twitter.
Trump’s Hall of Mirrors
8 Talking Points Memo by Josh MarshallOne of the most characteristic qualities of the Trump era is the deep-seated uncertainty. We talk a lot about the endemic chaos and unpredictability that President Trump seems to thrive on. But I mean something different. Most Presidents usually act in relatively predictable ways based on a more or less known set of basic beliefs and policy goals. The Trump White House operates very, very differently.
Did the President abruptly decide to remove all US troops from Syria because of his oft-claimed isolationism or claim that America wasn’t getting enough money in return? Was it to upend a bad news cycle? Was it a pay-off or favor to Vladimir Putin? Was it an effort to get Turkey to lay off its campaign against the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia over the murder of Jamal Khashoggi? Was the President simply seeking the satisfaction of unrestricted, dramatic action as legal peril surrounds him?
(For what it’s worth, my best guest is that he was trying to help Russia directly or Saudi Arabia by doing a favor for Turkey.)
[...]
It’s not crazy to think we shouldn’t be militarily involved in the Syrian civil war. But a jagged withdrawal is likely to leave allies on the ground ripe for slaughter. And in any case, the policy question is hard to grab hold of or evaluate since it seems very likely that a corrupt or politically self-interested rationale is actually driving the decision.
[...]
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https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/trumps-hall-of-mirrors
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