Trump takes a leaf out of Obama's book and withdraws forces from Syria

It was Mr. Obama who, at almost the exact same moment in his presidency, announced the removal of America's last troops in Iraq - fulfilling a campaign promise

President Trump has always taken a contrarian’s view of American military power: He wants to command the biggest, toughest forces on earth, and he wants to keep them at home.

The lessons that many in the Pentagon and the intelligence agencies learned in the post-9/11 era — that deployed forces are key to stopping terrorists before they reach American shores and vital to maintaining the alliances that keep the world safe — never resonated with Mr. Trump. He is far more engaged with the idea of using the military to secure the Mexican border than to counter Russia, Iran, North Korea