RT takes shots at Trump's Afghanistan two-step turnaround, as expected since the Russians don't want another Cold War drain on their selling oil and gas to Europe and China with Putin ensconced as a non-Brezhnev never wanting to be one.

Here, here and here, the latter item linking to Politico, here.

The first link above, excerpted mid-item:

The New York Times’ Maggie Haberman, known for her cozy relationship with the Clinton campaign, chimed in to compliment Trump on the speech, too. But it was Fox News’ Sean Hannity who really outshone them all when he praised Trump’s speech as “delivered perfectly” with “the right tone, the right cadence, the right pitch”.

At last, someone who knows what’s really important when ramping up your killing machine: the cadence and pitch of your voice when you announce it.

Kicking the can down the road

It’s been reported that Trump was heavily influenced in his decision by the generals advising him: Defense Secretary James Mattis, National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster and White House Chief of Staff, John Kelly.

Mattis, McMaster and Kelly are all bound to know that the war in Afghanistan is highly unlikely to be won by adding a few thousand more troops. Trump knows it, too. This is a war that has been going on for 16 years and is still without an end in sight. Nonetheless, Trump has promised that US troops will ultimately “win” the war.

In reality, out of a few unappealing options, Trump has simply chosen the one which works best for him, personally. He knows that if he is the president to take the troops home, and worse chaos erupts after their departure, he will be blamed. It’s far easier to kick the can down the road to the next guy, who will be faced with the exact same choice. If he knows he can’t win, the next best thing is to not look like he’s losing.

Linking in original omitted. More generals enter, Bannon exits; so are we better or worse with the death machine in the driver's seat? We as local politics unfolds, as a nation, and in a world order? This is Bush to Obama to Trump continuity; and don't forget Jimmy Carter and Zig B. were ramping up mischief back in the late 70's, setting groundwork for the Gipper's "Holy Warriors" as precursors of a never to end "War on Terror." A gift for the generals and military academies and National Guards and weapon manufacturers that never will stop giving, with an ancillary benefit that privacy can be stomped under the guise of needs for "NATIONAL SECURITY." And the poppies grow and grow. Generals get kicked up the brass ranks, retire, and continue to prosper as war industry mavens. Smedley Butler said it after Wilson and WW I, and it applies still. War is a Racket.