MILITARY/SYRIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The deaths of four Americans in Syria raise questions about the timing and scale of President Donald Trump’s directive to pull troops from the war-torn country. The White House said Wednesday [1-16-19] that there are no plans to reverse Trump’s decision to withdraw from Syria. But the suicide blast, claimed by ISIS, almost immediately rekindled debate about the wisdom of pulling about 2,000 US military personnel from the geopolitical battleground where Iran, Russia and Turkey are also vying for influence. Within hours, the bombing sparked bipartisan appeals from lawmakers who urged the President to stay the course in Syria until the terrorist group is definitively defeated. But analysts said the tragedy could just as easily deepen Trump’s instincts to walk away from a country he has said is all about ‘sand and death.'”
–Nicole Gaouette, “US deaths in Syria rekindle debate over Trump’s withdrawal decision,” CNN Politics, CNN.com, January 16, 2019 1:03 am