Trump shouldn’t be manipulated by cronies

mission was redefined as “nation-building”

It’s absurd to reason that America can’t leave because terrorism would flourish. When was the last time a Taliban member committed an act of terrorism in America, Europe or in any other Western nation? The only threat the Taliban pose is to armed foreigners who insist on staying in Afghanistan — and after 17 years, the continued U.S. presence in Afghanistan could legitimately be characterized as an occupation.

Trump really doesn’t have to deal with Afghanistan at all if he doesn’t want to. He just has to declare a belated victory and leave. It’s as simple as that.

Bin Laden is dead. Mission accomplished. If American companies want to pursue business opportunities on the wild Afghan frontier, they should do it on their own. The U.S. government could offer tax breaks to these companies to encourage business development and to offset the costs of venturing into the unknown — just as Elon Musk’s SpaceX gets government subsidies for blasting homemade rockets into space.

If the U.S. government was really concerned about terrorism, it should have started by sanctioning Saudi Arabia based on the fact that 15 of the 19 hijackers in the 9/11 attacks were Saudis. It also could have sanctioned Saudi Arabia for supporting the Islamic State, which committed terrorist attacks inside Western nations. But the Saudis won’t be sanctioned because they buy American weapons. So does their regional ally, Israel. Both nations do as much string-pulling in the Middle East as does America’s perennial whipping boy, Iran.

Why is America even still involved in the region at all, particularly when it stands on the verge of total energy independence from the Middle East?

The fact that the U.S. still has a presence in Afghanistan can only mean one thing: Trump actually believes what his advisers are whispering in his ear. These people have their own agendas, seeking personal profit or patronage payback while they wrap themselves in the American flag.