The Washington Post reported last night that just before President Donald Trump fired him, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper sent a memo to the White House arguing that the troops should not be pulled out of Afghanistan by Christmas as Trump had promised before the election. According to the Post account, citing anonymous sources, Esper expressed concerns about additional cuts. Conditions on the ground were not yet right, Esper wrote, citing the ongoing violence, possible dangers to the remaining troops in the event of a rapid pullout, potential damage to alliances and apprehension about undercutting the negotiations.
One former senior White House official said it is not possible for the United States to remove all troops “without crushing the coalition there.” “We can get down to maybe 4,500,” the official said. “But we cannot be at zero.”
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), who has advocated a swift and total withdrawal, reminded everyone who is the chief executive. “Reminder to those saying withdrawing troops may cause a ‘clash’ with Generals/Pentagon: there is only one Commander in Chief, it is @realDonaldTrump and when he orders the troops out of Afghanistan, the only proper answer is ‘Yes sir,'” he tweeted.
