Officials worry that U.S counterterrorism defenses will be weakened by Trump actions

The following article by Greg Miller and Missy Ryan was posted on the Washington Post website January 29, 2017:

President Trump signs an executive order Friday at the Pentagon that temporarily bans people from seven mostly Muslim countries from entering the United States. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)

Though cast as measures meant to make the country safe, the Trump administration’s moves during its first week in office are more likely to weaken the counterterrorism defenses the United States has erected over the past 16 years, several current and former U.S. officials said.

Through inflammatory rhetoric and hastily drawn executive orders, the administration has alienated allies, including Iraq, provided propaganda fodder to terrorist networks that frequently portray U.S. involvement in the Middle East as a religious crusade, and endangered critical cooperation from often-hidden U.S. partners — whether the leader of a mosque in an American suburb or the head of a Middle East intelligence service. Continue reading “Officials worry that U.S counterterrorism defenses will be weakened by Trump actions”