Donald Trump Takes Ownership Of Afghanistan War With New Announcement | Rachel Maddow

NOBODY FOR WHOM TONIGHT'S -- THERE ARE NO AMERICANS FOR WHOM
TONIGHT'S REMARKS ARE GREATER STAKES THAN THE 8500 MILITARY
FAMILIES WHO HAVE A LOVED ONE SERVE IN AFGHANISTAN.
THE TROOP NUMBERS HAVE GONE AS HIGH AS 100,000 AMERICAN
SOLDIERS SERVING THERE IN THE FIRST TERM OF THE OBAMA
ADMINISTRATION. IT'S NOW DOWN TO 8500.
WE WERE TOLD IN ADVANCE OF TONIGHT'S SPEECH TO EXPECT THAT
THE PRESIDENT MIGHT BE GREENLIGHTING, ALTHOUGH NOT
EXPLICITLY TALKING ABOUT A SMALL INCREASE IN TROOP NUMBERS.
WE KNOW THAT GENERAL NICHOLSON, HAD EXPRESSED A PREFERENCE TO
HAVE A FEW MORE THOUSAND U.S. TROOPS TO WORK WITH.
NOTHING LIKE THAT WOULD ACTUALLY SPELLED OUT TONIGHT.
I'M NOT QUITE SURE THAT WE GOT ANY DIRECT EXPLANATION FOR THE
PRESIDENT ABOUT ANYTHING SPECIFICALLY THAT IS GOING TO
CHANGE, OTHER THAN CALLING IT A NEW STRATEGY.
THAT SAID, SOMETIMES THE PENTAGON KNOWS WHAT THEY'RE
LISTENING FOR IN A WAY THAT WE LAYMEN DON'T.
JOINING US NOW FROM THE PENTAGON IS OUR NATIONAL SECURITY AND
MILITARY REPORTER. SHE'S BEEN COVERING THE PENTAGON
FOR A DOZEN YEARS, BEEN TO AFGHANISTAN MORE THAN TWO DOZEN
TIMES. THANKS FOR BEING WITH US
TONIGHT. >> THANKS, RACHEL.
>> I'M GLEANING WHAT I CAN FROM THE PRESIDENT'S WORD, FROM HIS
TONE, FROM THE SHIFT THIS REPRESENTS FROM HIS EARLIER
CLEAR STANCE THAT THE WAR IN AFGHANISTAN SHOULD BE ENDED
IMMEDIATELY. WITHIN THE PENTAGON, AT THE
DEFENSE DEPARTMENT, IS THERE A CLEAR SENSE OF WHAT HAS CHANGED
TONIGHT OR WHAT THE PRESIDENT WAS DIRECTING?
>> THERE WERE A COUPLE OF SMALL THINGS THAT HE MENTIONED THAT
SHOW A PATH FORWARD FOR THE MILITARY.
LET ME START BY SAYING THERE IS NOT SOME DRAMATIC CHANGE IN THE
WAR IN AFGHANISTAN BASED ON THE SPEECH HE GAVE TONIGHT.
A COUPLE OF MINOR THINGS. WHEN HE TALKED ABOUT EXPANDING
AUTHORITIES FOR TARGETING CRIMINAL NETWORKS IN
AFGHANISTAN. THAT SOUNDS LIKE HE'S GIVING THE
AUTHORITY FOR THE U.S. MILITARY TO START OFFENSIVELY TARGETING
THE TALIBAN AGAIN. YOU'LL REMEMBER IN 2014 THE
QUOTE UNQUOTE COMBAT MISSION IN AFGHANISTAN TURNED OVER TO A
TRAIN AND ADVICE ASSIST MISSION FOR THE AFGHAN MILITARY.
HE DIDN'T SPELL IT OUT EXPLICITLY BUT IT SOUNDS LIKE
PRESIDENT TRUMP IS SAYING ONCE AGAIN THE U.S. MILITARY WILL
HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO TARGET THE TALIBAN.
THEY HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO TARGET AL QAEDA, ISIS.
BUT IT SOUNDS LIKE THIS IS A NEW AUTHORITY THAT HE'S GRANTING.
HE ALSO SAID THAT -- >> BEFORE YOU GET TO THE SECOND
POINT, CAN I ASK A CLARIFYING QUESTION THERE.
>>Y SURE. >> ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE
NOTICED IS THAT THE PRESIDENT TALKED ABOUT DEVOLVING
DECISION-MAKING AUTHORITY ON KEY MATTERS.
LIKE WHEN THERE WAS THE GIGANTIC MOTHER OF ALL BOMBS THAT THEY
DROPPED IN EASTERN AFGHANISTAN IN APRIL.
ONE OF THE KEY REPORTING MOMENTS THERE IS WHEN WE LEARNED THAT
GENERAL NICHOLSON IN AFGHANISTAN THAT ORDERED THAT, NOTHING THAT
WENT UP THROUGH THE CHAIN WITH THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE OR THE
PRESIDENT. WE'VE ALSO BEEN TOLD THAT THE
SORT OF, I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S EXPLICITLY THE RULE OF
ENGAGEMENT BUT THE TERMS OP OF WHICH U.S. OFFICIALS ARE
ENGAGING HAS BEEN LOOSENED. IS THIS THE PRESIDENT DESCRIBING
SOMETHING TONIGHT THAT HAS ALREADY BEEN IN EFFECT FOR
MONTHS? >> YES AND NO.
YOU HEARD HIM SAY WE CAN'T MICROMANAGE A WAR FROM
WASHINGTON. SO BACK IN JUNE PRESIDENT TRUMP
GAVE SECRETARY MATTIS THE AUTHORITY TO DEPLOY FORCE TO
AFGHANISTAN WITHOUT GOING TO THE WHITE HOUSE AND REQUESTING ANY
SPECIAL PERMISSION. SECRETARY MATTIS HAS HAD THAT
AUTHORITY FOR MORE THAN TWO MONTHS.
I FIND IT INTERESTING THAT HE HAS NOT USED IT.
GENERAL NICHOLSON BACK IN FEBRUARY AND ACTUALLY LAST FALL,
HE STARTED TALKING OPENLY ABOUT THE FACT THAT HE NEEDS SEVERAL
THOUSAND MORE U.S. TROOPS IN AFGHANISTAN TO FIGHT THE WAR
THERE, TO CONTINUE WITH THE MISSION.
SECRETARY MATTIS MADE A CONCERTED EFFORT AND DECISION
NOT TO DEPLOY THOSE ADDITIONAL TROOPS WHEN HE HAD THAT
AUTHORITY IN JUNE. HE WANTED THIS TO BE PRESIDENT
TRUMP'S STRATEGY. PRESIDENT TRUMP WITH THIS
ANNOUNCEMENT, WITH THIS SPEECH TONIGHT OWNS THIS WAR.
THIS IS NOW HIS STRATEGY THAT THE U.S. MILITARY WILL BE
IMPLEMENTING. RIGHT WHEN THE SPEECH ENDED,
SECRETARY MATTIS PUT OUT A WRITTEN STATEMENT WHERE HE
TALKED ABOUT HE'S DIRECTED GENERAL DUNFORD TO IMPLEMENT
THIS NEW STRATEGY. SO PRESIDENT TRUMP HAS REALLY
BEEN RUNNING THIS WAR LIKE A CEO.
HE'S DELEGAING THINGS OUT TO HIS COMMANDERS.
SAYING I WILL NOT SEND TROOPS INTO HARM'S WAY UNLESS I'M DOING
IT UNDER YOUR STRATEGY. >> NOW HE'S MADE THAT STRATEGY
EXPLICIT. I GUESS FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF
THE MILITARY LINES THINGS UP SO THAT THEY FEEL THAT THEY CAN
CARRY OUT THESE AUTHORITIES THAT WERE ALREADY DELEGATED TO THEM.
I GUESS IN THAT SENSE IT'S A REASSERTION OF THE CHAIN OF
COMMAND AND CIVILIAN CONTROL OF THE MILITARY EVEN IF THEY HAD TO
PUSH THEM OUT THERE TO DO IT. >> AND ONE OTHER THING YOU
MENTIONED EARLIER, NO TIME LINE FOR WITHDRAWAL.
BUT HE ALSO MADE IT VERY CLEAR, PRESIDENT TRUMP, THAT THIS IS
NOT AN OPEN ENDED COMMITMENT. AND HE TALKED ABOUT HOW THE U.S.
IS GOING TO NEED TO SEE REAL REFORMS AND REAL RESULTS FROM
THE AFGHAN GOVERNMENT IN ORDER TO STAY THERE.
THAT'S SOMETHING -- THAT'S LANGUAGE THAT WE'RE NOT
ACCUSTOMED TO HEARING. THERE'S THE AFGHAN GOVERNMENT,
IT HAS ITS PROBLEMS, PROBLEMS WITH CORRUPTION.
THE MILITARY HAS ITS PROBLEMS. BUT THAT IS A VERY SPECIFIC, I
DON'T WANT TO USE THE WORD THREAT.
BUT THAT IS SPECIFIC LANGUAGE THAT WE'RE NOT ACCUSTOMED TO
HEARING FROM THE AMERICAN GOVERNMENT AGAINST THE AFGHANS.
>> COURTNEY, NBC NEW

Donald Trump Takes Ownership Of Afghanistan War With New Announcement | Rachel Maddow | MSNBC

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