Washington (CNN) Seated at the head of his Situation Room conference table, President Donald Trump was adamant: American troops must come home from Syria . Still, the decision only highlighted discrepancies among administration officials over the future of the roughly 2,000 troops deployed in the country. Pressed about whether Bolton's comments were still applicable, the senior administration official suggested previous statements no longer applied. If administration officials and Trump's allies in Congress were distressed by the decision, however, there was little excuse for them to be surprised. At one stage, Dunford asked the President to state explicitly what he wanted to see happen in Syria, according to an administration official.

Source: CNN December 19, 2018 22:12 UTC