Trump Considering Sending 14,000 More Troops to the Middle East

The Trump administration is considering a significant expansion of the U.S. military footprint in the Middle East, including dozens more ships, other military hardware and as many as 14,000 additional troops to counter Iran, U.S. officials said, according to The Wall Street Journal.

President Trump is expected to make a decision on the new deployments as soon as this month, those officials said, the Journal reports.

There is growing fear among U.S. military and other administration officials that an attack on U.S. interests and forces could leave the U.S. with few options in the region, officials said, notes WSJ.


Well, there is an option: Pull the damn troops out of the region and bring them home!

But that does not appear likely under Donald "Why do we have troops over there?" Trump. He is a bully and the military is behind him on adding the troops and hardware.

More from the Journal:

John Rood, the Pentagon’s senior policy official, on Wednesday hinted at an expanded deployment to counter Iran. Mr. Rood said no decision has been made on additional capabilities but that the situation is expected to remain fluid. “Deterrence is dynamic, our response is going to be dynamic.”

Key uniformed military officers, including Gen. McKenzie of Central Command and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Army Gen. Mark Milley, have indicated support for additional deterrence, the U.S. officials said, as has White House national-security adviser Robert O’Brien.

Thankfully, Trump does not appear to want to engage troops in a war but adding personnel will only increase the targets and perhaps, from his perspective, force him into committing US troops in battle.

-RW