By Gabrielle Seunagal
Yesterday, President Trump announced to the world that he was ordering the launch of airstrikes on Syria after a chemical weapons attack that ended the lives of many men, women, and children in Syria. The Commander In Chief’s course of action was a surprising contrast from his campaign rhetoric of “America First” and previous 2013 tweets in which he condemned former President Obama for interfering in foreign affairs, particularly in Syria. As a result of the airstrikes, many people who were once proud Trump supporters censured him and some have even withdrawn their support, stating that his actions do not represent what they voted for.
Many Trump supporters linked his actions to ones they believe Hillary Clinton would have taken had she won the election. British vlogger, Paul Joseph Watson slammed the President as “another deep state/Neo-con puppet” and declared that he is officially off of the Trump train. Cassandra Fairbanks, another supporter of the President stated that she might be forced to retract her alliance after last night and noted feelings of devastation. Although the President meant well, his action undoubtedly alienated a lot of supporters and could seriously wound him should he choose to run for re-election in 2020.
Many Americans view the President’s actions as government overreach and fear that launching airstrikes in Syria could engender “WWIII” which trended for several hours on Twitter last night. Although President Trump meant well, his actions could have negative impacts on our relationships with other countries around the world. Russian President Putin stated that Trump’s actions created a “significant blow” to US-Russia relations. Syria labeled the attack as “disgraceful” and Iran asserted that the airstrikes would strengthen fallen terrorists. Despite all predictions, the true consequences of the Syrian airstrikes remains to be seen.