Rand Paul is pretty much the only senator backing Trump's Syria decision so far
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) is going against the grain.
A number of Paul's GOP colleagues have come out against the White House's decision to pull back troops from Northern Syria, while greenlighting a Turkish invasion of the region. Even President Trump's allies like Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) are calling for a bipartisan rebuke of the plan, especially since they believe it puts Kurdish allies, who are viewed as enemies by Ankara, at risk.
But not Paul. The senator isn't generally afraid to disagree with or criticize Trump, but he has always been a staunch non-interventionist, and was ready to back the president's plan to get U.S. troops out of a foreign war.
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Paul has also previously advocated for a softer approach when dealing with Iran, as well, which is relevant to the current situation. Many of the Republicans who have come out in opposition to the pullback believe that the removal of troops in northern Syria will embolden Tehran to escalate tensions in the region.
Either way, Paul looks like he'll be sitting alone at this particular lunch table for now, as the Republican opposition continues to pile up. Tim O'Donnell
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Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
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