by Gilbert Schramm
On October 7th Trump betrayed the Kurds. I got a phone call from a friend who lives in Kurdistan. My friend said he felt “poisoned.” I knew exactly what he meant- I had the same reaction. So have many American servicemen who worked with the Kurds. Trump’s casual betrayal of the Kurds will have repercussions that will last for generations. Sickening.
My friend described seeing Kurds on city streets answering their cell phones—then starting to sob and weep. He said that everyone knew what was going on when that happened—someone had just learned that a son or father, daughter or mother had been either killed wounded or turned into a refugee. All thanks to a whimsical decision by President Trump.
I spent years in the Middle East. I worked with Turks, Kurds, Iranians and Arabs. Divide by religion, and there are Sunni, Shia and Sufi Muslims; Christians; Jews, and many other smaller religions. There are social and class distinctions too. Despite their differences, however, these groups all share a strong common trait: they deeply value strength of character, courage, honesty, loyalty and honor. That means that no matter how much any group dislikes the Kurds, no one, not even our allies, can really respect America anymore. If I still lived there, I’d have trouble looking anyone in the eye. They would have trouble looking at an American as well because they feel so much shame for us.
To fully understand the depth of the moral cesspool Trump has plunged our country into, you need to remember the chain of events. First, although the Kurds have been America’s most loyal allies in the Middle East, Trump, in a casual phone call, gave Turkey a green light to invade Kurdish territory. He failed to warn the Pentagon that US troops would be withdrawn. Then he said they had already withdrawn and were “safe.” This was patently untrue. The Turks then crossed the border and began ethnic cleansing. Under intense criticism, Trump threatened to “obliterate Turkey’s economy” if they “went too far.” No one knew what that meant. Trump’s Pentagon then said US troops would not leave “abruptly” but would take a few weeks to “consolidate their bases.” (Wait, Trump said they were already gone!) Pence and Pompeo were sent to Turkey (without any real promise that Erdogan would meet with them). Lacking any credible leverage, they agreed to everything Turkey wanted (occupation of Kurdish land and their replacement with Turkish allies). Pence solemnly called it a “great deal.” He claimed US troops would protect the Kurds (who hadn’t, it turned out, been consulted) as they abandoned their homeland. (Wait, Trump said US troops were already gone!) The Pentagon had said they were busy “consolidating” their bases, so how could they possibly protect the Kurds? The US then started bombing their own abandoned bases. Trump, Pence and Pompeo were so extravagant in their praise of the “Trump deal” that Turkey’s Erdogan knew he could violate the “ceasefire” as often as he liked—the administration would be bound to excuse any violation. Five days into the 120-hour pause (Turkey never called it a ceasefire), there had been no pause in the Turkish assault and some 300,000 Kurds were refugees. Trump said he was keeping a campaign promise to end “endless wars,” but he had just sent 2,000 troops to Saudi Arabia. Then, under pressure, Trump said the troops were going to Iraq “to fight ISIS.” (Wait! That’s not home! Anyway, Trump had earlier said ISIS was already totally defeated!) Next, Trump’s Pentagon said some US troops would remain in Syria to “secure the oilfields.” Then Trump disagreed…
Confused yet? You bet! Everyone says the Middle East is confusing. We should think about the fact that we are the ones who often create needless confusion there.
Next the story was that US troops were going to Iraq. But no one had asked the Iraqis about that and they promptly said, ‘no thanks.’ What is obvious is that there never was any clear, coordinated plan for Trump’s Syria decision. Any competent general would agree that a retreat under fire is the most dangerous maneuver an army can undertake. Trump’s bizarre actions have put our servicemen in just that position. As they withdrew, Kurds pelted them with rotten vegetables. Reporting confirmed that US troops remained stony faced, refusing to look Kurds in the eye…like I said—no one wants to look into anyone’s eyes.
None of this shabby, dangerous process showed that Trump had any deep concern for our troops in the region—or that he had even thought about it.
By my count this is deal-maker Donnie’s first real deal. It was an abject sell-out of our loyal Kurdish allies. Turkey and Russia get everything they wanted. The Kurds lost their homeland. The US got absolutely nothing—except universal scorn, distrust and disdain.
There is a weird argument around that the proper way to replace Trump is through the election. Elections were created to provide an orderly transfer of political power. Our founding fathers created impeachment to deal with the chance that an incapable, unfit or criminal person connived their way to power could be removed when they proved unfit.
Trump is clearly unfit. Republicans say we need to wait for something worse. What would that be? Well the Turks aren’t any more impressed by Trump’s actions than the Kurds. The Turks hold some 60 US nuclear warheads at their base at Incirlik. All they have to do is walk in and take them. Presto! A new nuclear power in the Middle East! No time wasted on talk about “enrichment” or “centrifuges” or “inspections,” just a quick grab. Who could really blame them? Who in their right mind would trust Donald Trump with their country’s security?
