White House spokesman Sean Spicer tweeted a photo today of Donald Trump and key staff receiving a Syria briefing from his national security team.
The photo is reminiscent of the Situation Room photo of President Obama, VP Biden, Secretary of State Clinton and others being briefed on the status of the raid that killed Osama bin Laden.
But there’s a striking difference. While Obama’s briefing included national security staff, Trump’s included relatives, political staff, and the Secretary of Commerce.
Here are the two photos. First, Obama, annotated by Hannah Ross. You’ll note it’s entirely made up of national security staff, or the chief of staff. There isn’t even a spokesperson present. And certainly, Sasha and Malia were nowhere to be found.
Now here’s Donald Trump’s version. Why is Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner there? Why is Steve Bannon, who’s job is entirely political. Same goes for Steven Miller, whose job has nothing to do with war, and who is also political.
But the real piece de resistance is the Secretary of Commerce, Secretary of the Treasury, and the director of the National Economic Council. What role could they possibly have in planning a Tomahawk missile attack on Syria? Maybe Trump was serious about invading the Middle East and taking over its oil. Is that their role at the table?
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