Expect exodus of high-ranking Trump officials because they 'no longer have anything to gain' by staying: columnist

Writing for the conservative Bulwark, columnist and author Robert Tracinski said Donald Trump's Syria debacle is likely the turning point for even the most hardened of his most avid defenders in the White House. Many of them, he said, will likely start leaving.

As Tracinski began, "Donald Trump’s betrayal of the Kurds is a moment that might be more important than it seems—one that is likely to have a far-reaching impact that goes well beyond what happens in Syria."

"Why?" he continued. "Because this is the moment when responsible adults in the administration and in high-ranking executive positions, however many of them are left, know that they have nothing to gain by continuing to serve in the administration—or from showing any loyalty to it."

Citing an infamous -- and anonymous Washington Post column -- reportedly written by an administration insider who claimed staffers were working to keep the president in check, the columnist bluntly stated, "If you were one of the serious professionals hanging around in the Trump administration because you thought you could still have influence and prevent stupid and malicious actions like the betrayal of the Kurds, now you know it was all an illusion."

"Trump dumped John Bolton because he objected to inviting the Taliban to Camp David on the anniversary of 9/11—such a small quibble!—and he also apparently eliminated anyone who could have prevented him from shaking down the Ukrainian president for dirt on his political opponents," he explained. "Trump has fired, demoralized, or simply overridden all of his serious expert advisors, and now we’re starting to see how he really makes decisions. The whole illusion of, 'Trump isn’t so bad after all, so what are you Never Trumpers complaining about?' is starting to disappear."

That, he points out, appears to be a precursor to White House officials eyeing the exits before things grow even worse.

"This is just the beginning. After Trump’s decision to abandon the Kurds—made impulsively and at the behest of an illiberal foreign strongman—the disillusionment on the part of his staffers is going to snowball," he suggested. "More and more of his competent advisors will jump ship. If you’re a serious national security professional, why stick around when you realize that Trump isn’t listening to you and instead is taking his talking points from a former Army reservist whose main qualification is being a jerk on Twitter? You will leave, and Trump will have a hard time finding anyone decent to replace you."

"At some point, we could find ourselves left with nothing but a bunch of Rudy Giulianis—opportunists feeding the president conspiracy theories and promoting their own corrupt personal agendas—and things are going to get way crazier and even more dangerous than they are now," he predicted. "And the responsible adults will leave not just because they know President Trump isn’t listening to them, but also because they know their own reputations are going to be sullied."

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