President Donald Trump ‘s decision to pull U.S. troops out of northeastern Syria last week ahead of a planned Turkish military invasion of the area came under intense criticism from both sides of the political aisle, especially from top Republican ally Sen. Lindsey Graham.
Graham, who labeled Trump’s decision a “blunder” and a “disaster in the making” seemingly found a way to back the president on Monday as he announced his full support for Trump’s decision to deploy economic sanctions on Turkey, according to The Hill .
“I strongly support President Trump’s decision to initiate executive order sanctions against Turkish officials and economy for Turkey’s invasion of northeastern Syria. Turkey is attacking the Kurdish forces that supported us the most in destroying the ISIS Caliphate,” Graham stated.
The South Carolina senator’s decision to back the president’s move came after he joined Trump and other officers involved with dealing with the ongoing conflict in the region. He also urged his fellow Republican colleagues to back the sanctions.
“The President’s team has a plan and I intend to support them as strongly as possible, and to give them reasonable time and space to achieve our mutual goals,” Graham added.
But Graham’s remarks on Monday supporting the president at least somewhat contrast earlier remarks he made after a reported phone call with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. In the said call, he reportedly revealed that the two congressional leaders were joining forces to pass a resolution that condemned the president’s decision to pull U.S. troops from Syria, as previously reported by The Inquisitr .
Pelosi announced the resolution in a Monday morning tweet.
“Pleased to have a conversation with Sen. Lindsey Graham this morning. Our first order of business was to agree that we must have a bipartisan, bicameral joint resolution to overturn the President’s dangerous decision in Syria immediately,” Pelosi wrote.
Pelosi explained the seriousness of the situation that Trump left in Syria, which included the potential reformation of ISIS terrorists who were previously kept under control with the help of U.S.-backed Kurdish forces.
Graham confirmed Pelosi’s call for a resolution in a tweet of his own shortly after the speaker’s announcement.
Former Defense Secretary Gen. James Mattis was another high-profile Republican who criticized Trump’s decision over the weekend, explaining that Trump should have taken a page out of the lessons that former President Barack Obama learned after he yanked U.S. troops out of Iraq.
Mattis said it is “inevitable” that ISIS terrorists would once again gain strength in the region if U.S. forces aren’t there to help Kurdish allies contain them, as reported by The Inquisitr .