President Trump, perhaps taking notice of the media’s portrayal of his missile strike on a Syrian airbase as only step one in a larger planned United Stated invasion of Syria, has defused the speculation by officially stating that, “We are not going into Syria.”
In an interview set to air during Fox Business Network’s Mornings with Maria on Wednesday morning, Trump responds to theories that he has ordered the military to prepare plans to invade Damascus in Syria. He tells host Maria Bartiromo, “We are not going into Syria. But when I see people using horrible, horrible chemical weapons which they agreed not to use under the Obama administration, but they violated it.”
Maria Bartiromo suggests that Syria was suppose to have gotten rid of all their chemical weapons in 2013 under an agreement between Russia and Barack Obama. John Kerry proudly stated that under this agreement, the United States secured removal of over 100 chemical weapons from Assad’s regime.
Trump responds by saying, “Hey, look. What I did should have been done by the Obama Administration a long time before I did it,” Trump responded. “And you would’ve had a much better — I think Syria would be a lot better off right now than it has been.”
Trump declares to Fox News: “We are not going into Syria.” https://t.co/fPTi6EK3Aj pic.twitter.com/wPxtpXlnXR
— Andrew Kirell (@AndrewKirell) April 11, 2017
The president’s sudden strike on Syria’s airbase, the same base that U.S. intelligence says launched the chemical attack on a local rebel held town earlier this month, has many of Trump’s staunchest supporters shaken and concerned that he was going back on his campaign promises to stay out of Syria. Conservative talk show host and radio hall of famer Michael Savage, who has been credited for being a major factor in helping to get Trump elected, was one of the most vocal voices speaking out against the president’s military action in Syria.
Despite Trump’s National Security Advisor General H.R. McMaster stating that we are “prepared to do more” in Syria to remove Assad, and reports claiming that the president is drawing up plans to sent 150,000 American troops to Damascus, it appears Trump is determined to keep the United States out of another costly ground war in the Middle East.
In fact, President Trump seems to be focusing his attention on North Korea and an upcoming plan to destroy their capabilities to develop nuclear weapons, as indicated by him saying we are “sending an armada, very powerful, including subs” to the area.
This news should provide a breath of relief to those in Trump’s core support base who have been on edge about the president possibly being influenced to engage in yet another Middle East military engagement, and prove yet again Trump’s ability to utilize an opportunity to advance his agenda without committing to actions that would cripple his administration in the future.