The vast majority of Senate Republicans backed Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Thursday in a rebuke of President Trump’s rationale for withdrawing U.S. troops from Syria and Afghanistan, voting to declare that the Islamic State’s continued operations in both countries poses a serious threat to the United States. Democrats who voted against the measure characterized it as a commitment to endless war. could allow terrorists to regroup, destabilize critical regions, and create vacuums that could be filled byt Iran or Russia, to the detriment of United States interests and those of our allies.”Several Republican senators have warned that Kurdish fighters who have operated in Syria would be left particularly vulnerable if the United States withdraws. In the past, the Senate has backed similar bipartisan measures expressing support for NATO in the face of Trump’s criticisms and threats to withdraw from the alliance. Earlier this month, the House overwhelmingly passed a measure to prevent Trump from using any federal funds to execute a withdrawal from NATO.

Source: Washington Post January 31, 2019 20:32 UTC