Foreign Affairs

Raskin: GOP Colleagues Will Call Out Trump’s Betrayal Of The Kurds, But Not His Betrayal Of Americans

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Democratic Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin said his Republican colleagues will call out President Donald Trump’s betrayal of the Kurds, but not his betrayal of Americans.

Raskin’s comments Friday came after a week of criticism from congressional Democrats and Republicans alike regarding the president’s Sunday decision to pull U.S. soldiers from northern Syria — a move some said was disloyal to U.S.-backed Kurdish fighters who helped defeat the Islamic State.

“They’re experiencing real erosion in public opinion, including in Republican public opinion,” he said at an Axios event.

He continued that the Trump administration’s “outrageous betrayal of the Kurds and their exposure of the Kurds to the Syrian military land and air onslaught.”

“It’s amazing to me that my Republican colleagues can call out the president’s for his betrayal of the Kurds, but most of them still cannot call out the president for his betrayal of the Americans,” Raskin said.

.@repraskin: It’s amazing to me that my Republican colleagues are willing to call out the president for his betrayal of the Kurds, but refuse to call out the president for his betrayal of Americans #Axios360 pic.twitter.com/qyDlfoGWXi

— Axios (@axios) October 11, 2019

Raskin might have been referring to particular Republicans who often side with Trump but opposed his Syria decision, like South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham.

Graham, who has been a supporter of the president in recent years, expressed his disapproval of the move Monday, which he called “sad” and “dangerous.”

“I feel very bad for the Americans and allies who have sacrificed to destroy the ISIS Caliphate because this decision virtually reassures the reemergence of ISIS. So sad. So dangerous. President Trump may be tired of fighting radical Islam. They are NOT tired of fighting us. Finally, this decision makes it difficult for the U.S. to recruit allies against radical Islam,” he wrote.

Other Republicans like former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and California Rep. Kevin McCarthy voiced disapproval for the move, Axios reported Wednesday.

Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, however, said he stands with Trump on the issue.

“I stand with [Donald Trump] today as he once again fulfills his promises to stop our endless wars and have a true America First foreign policy,” Paul wrote in a Monday tweet.

Turkish warplanes bombed Syrian towns for about six hours Wednesday, killing at least seven people, as part of its offensive against the Kurds, The New York Times reported, citing Syrian activist group Rojava Information Center.