Trump plunges toward the kind of Middle Eastern conflict he pledged to avoid

With a single momentous decision to authorize a drone strike killing a top Iranian commander in Baghdad, President Trump immediately thrust himself into the center of a volatile and unpredictable region — taking his presidency into just the kind of foreign entanglement he pledged to avoid.

Trump followed early Friday’s targeted strike on Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani — the leader of Iran’s special operations forces abroad — with a decision to send an additional 3,500 soldiers to the Middle East to respond to the heightened tensions.

Coming in quick succession, the drone strike and troop deployment cast Trump as a pivotal figure in what could be the United States’ next military conflict with a foreign power. The moves also underscored how Trump’s impulsive approach to the presidency can swiftly upend the status quo to produce a sense of disarray. Continue reading.