AFGHANISTAN/JAMES MATTIS/MILITARY/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump is considering a major withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, the latest in a series of abrupt changes to U.S. military policy the president is either eyeing or has executed over the past 24 hours. Trump is weighing the decision to pull back from the 17-year-old conflict, a senior U.S. official told USA TODAY. The revelation comes as Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, widely seen as a steadying figure in the administration, cited differing opinions with the president on Thursday to explain his decision to leave his post. Taken together with Trump’s announcement he is withdrawing roughly 2,000 troops from Syria, the moves appeared to represent a reshuffling of the administration’s military strategy that more closely aligns with what Trump promised during his campaign but that has been opposed by Mattis and others inside the Pentagon. The idea of pulling back from Afghanistan drew a sharp rebuke from Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said he recently returned from Afghanistan and maintained that ISIS remains a threat there.”
–Tom Vanden Brook, John Fritze and David Jackson, “Trump considering withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan,” USA Today, December 20, 2018 9:30 pm