Trump's Betrayal of GWOT Veterans is Nearly Complete
Nobody Should be Surprised
Last week, President Donald Trump, a man who described dating in the 70s as his Vietnam, betrayed Global War on Terrorism veterans by shaking hands with former Al Qaeda commander turned statesman, Syrian President Ahmed al-Shara (AKA Abu Jolani), and revoking the Temporary Protective Status for nearly 10,000 Afghan refugees.
On May 13, President Trump lavished praise on Jolani and Saudi leader Mohammad Bin Salman (MBS) during a well-orchestrated public meeting in Riyadh. Trump, who announced a $600 billion Saudi commitment to invest in the United States before the meeting, called MBS a “great guy” and “an incredible man.” While Saudi Arabia remains a critical American ally, its intelligence services have been credibly implicated not only in the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi but also in the September 11 attacks.
But Trump wasn’t done praising a man drenched in American blood. Trump, ever the tough negotiator, received no public assurances of a break with Al Qaeda from Jolani. However, in return, he promised to drop sanctions and normalize relations with the former Camp Bucca detainee, calling him “courageous” and “brave.” Notably, Jolani’s Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, a group that Jolani formed after a dispute with Al Qaeda, is still listed as a designated terrorist group, partly for its abhorrent human rights record but also because it is filled with radical Islamic terrorists.
On May 12, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem revoked Afghan refugees’ Temporary Protective Status (TPS) due to “improved security” and a “stabilizing economy in Afghanistan.” While Trump welcomed White Afrikaaners to the United States, he paved the way for the eventual deportation of up to 10,000 Afghan refugees who stood by American servicemembers for twenty years defending the United States from Jolani’s compatriots.
The Taliban, which is still and always will be allied to Al Qaeda, will execute, rape, and torture any Afghan who returns to their gender apartheid regime. And when that eventually happens—and it will happen within the first month of their arrival—any semblance of honor will be extinguished. But that won’t matter to our ever-dishonorable political leaders.
Democrats will try to use it against Republicans, even though it was their party who foolishly followed Trump’s moronic Doha Agreement, even though it had no legal standing compared to a Senate ratified bi-lateral security agreement. However, should they ever return to office, they will return to form: a party that chastises people for failing to be an ally, even though less than 3 years ago, they left a country filled with people of color to a real patriarchal regime.
In return, President Trump will hold an expensive military parade this summer while boasting about his new and improved (non-woke) military. However, Trump will never understand that wars are fought not only for economic interests but also by men and women whose honor is paramount to them. Trump may conduct the ultimate dog and pony show this summer, but he has proven time and again that he’s willing to throw veterans’ honor under the bus if it helps his bottom line.
In the end, the GWOT generation will join its comrades, the Korean and Vietnam War generations, in the ashbin of American history as the country continues amusing itself to death.
Thank you for your service, indeed.
Our military have always paid the highest prices for their ‘service’- I really don’t understand anymore why you all would place your lives and sanity on the line for a country that only gives lip service in their spare time. The depth of your commitment to each other , your brothers in arms from other countries, and to our Constitution is awe-inspiring and heartbreaking.