https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/10/07/donald-trump-is-not-commander-in-chief-trumps-former-isis-envoy-excoriates-his-syria-decision/


Brett McGurk, then the U.S. envoy for the global coalition against ISIS, speaks during a news conference in Iraq in 2017. (Hadi Mizban/AP)

By Aaron Blake

Oct. 7, 2019 at 9:20 a.m. EDT

Ever since former defense secretary Jim Mattis resigned over President Trump’s announced withdrawal from Syria, he has declined to directly criticize or even address Trump’s decision-making as president.

Brett McGurk is showing no such deference.

McGurk, who served as Trump’s envoy for the fight against the Islamic State, lit into Trump early Monday morning over the White House’s announcement that it is essentially handing northern Syria over to Turkey — a decision many feel could lead to Turkey slaughtering the United States’ Kurdish allies in the region.

McGurk took the occasion to not just criticize Trump’s immediate decision; he used it to cast a picture of a president who makes rash life-or-death decisions without the appropriate amount of thought. Essentially, he confirmed everything Trump’s critics worry about how the president prosecutes U.S. involvement in wars and conducts foreign policy.

Link to tweet

Brett McGurk ✔ @brett_mcgurk

Donald Trump is not a Commander-in-Chief. He makes impulsive decisions with no knowledge or deliberation. He sends military personnel into harm’s way with no backing. He blusters and then leaves our allies exposed when adversaries call his bluff or he confronts a hard phone call.

1:56 AM - Oct 7, 2019

“Donald Trump is not a Commander-in-Chief,” said McGurk, who resigned along with Mattis over Trump’s initial (but later aborted) plan for a full Syria withdrawal. “He makes impulsive decisions with no knowledge or deliberation. He sends military personnel into harm’s way with no backing. He blusters and then leaves our allies exposed when adversaries call his bluff or he confronts a hard phone call.”

McGurk also suggested the people around Trump have no idea what’s going on. He noted that the White House’s statement referred to the United States no longer holding Islamic State fighters and how the decision will save U.S. taxpayer money, but the United States isn’t actually holding those fighters. (The “SDF” refers to the Syrian Democratic Forces, a Kurdish-led military force.)

Link to tweet

?s=20
Brett McGurk ✔ @brett_mcgurk

Replying to @brett_mcgurk
The WH statement tonight on Syria after Trump spoke with Erdogan demonstrates a complete lack of understanding of anything happening on the ground. The “United States” is not holding any ISIS detainees. They are all being held by the SDF, which Trump just served up to Turkey.



1:56 AM - Oct 7, 2019

These statements often seem as though they were dictated by Trump without the normal care and fact-checking that would usually be involved in such high-stakes foreign policy announcements. McGurk seems to indicate that’s exactly what’s going on.

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