That's cool Al-Qaeda was in the White House

Reagan:

Literally funded Al-Qaeda to fight the Soviets in Afghanistan, because he never thought the leopards would eat our faces.
Wow Rump really fucked up the oval office didn't he
- Trump decorated the Oval Office in his typical Trump style. Over-the-top gaudiness which seems high-class only to people who have no class to begin with. All Trump products are like that and have always been known to be like that, from his hotels to his various other shitty spin-off products.
- To think it was more understated in the 80s.
Is that the guy from That 70s Show sitting next to him?
- Yes

I've always thought this was a weird thing to attack Trump on. There are so many more valid attack points that surely this one didn't need to be invented.

The president of Syria was indeed at one point a member of an al-Qaeda affiliate. And he is an Islamist. But at the same time, since he came to power it's undoubtable that Syria, and indeed, himself, have moderated in this respect and while human rights abuses have not disappeared, the situation has improved a lot. Nobody will pretend that the good cancels the bad but at the end of the day he's a pretty grey person and I think calling him an "al-Qaeda jihadist" is unfairly dismissive of what he's actually done for Syria since he's come to power. To my eyes at least, he doesn't act or think like a terrorist; he acts and thinks like a man who is president of an extremely unstable country doing what he can to keep things together. Is it perfect? No.

I feel like being the leader of a group which toppled an authoritarian dictatorship and doesn't immediately go back to ruling with an iron fist, he has enough credibility deserves at least a chance at redemption. I expected it to turn out like how it was when the Taliban took over Afghanistan, and so far his government has exceeded (these very grim) expectations. But history will judge.

It's about the hypocrisy and the double-standard. Nobody on the right seems to have a problem with Trump hosting a (former) jihadist. Meanwhile Mamdani has to constantly reaffirm his opposition to jihad, 9/11,...
Trump's probably doing it for all the wrong reasons. Like, he's probably just impressed that the guy is tall and strong and a former warlord.
But, giving the new Syrian government legitimacy is probably a good move for the Syrian people right now. And good for the wider middle east. Maybe in the future they'll start persecuting the non-Islamic minorities in Syria, or will become massively corrupt. But, for the moment, it's good to reward them for seeming to try to do the right thing, and to encourage them to keep doing that.
- Agreed. There are some people who are so far gone that it's better to cut them off and try to isolate them (i.e. Taliban), but the night is young with Syria and we can still encourage them to develop in a positive direction. Ultimately, with Bashar al-Assad now a prisoner of the Kremlin, a stable and peaceful Syria is in everyone's interest.
This reads pathetically like a Christo-fascist government PR than anything else.
There's a difference between giving a new leader legitimacy and calling them right inside your house and making him a celebrity amongst your little group of fascist friends.
You know they're not there talking about redemption, civilians and policies, right? They're most likely discussing how trump and him can profit off of each other on a personal level. But people who've been living under a rock will have a hard to see that.
And also history has proved how US behaves and collaborates with dictators. It has nothing to do with Trump.
- If you are going to accuse me of being a fascist, I will not expend the energy needed to displace that belief.
it’s undoubtable that Syria, and indeed, himself, have indeed moderated in this respect
Only in the context that Al Quaeda and ISIS are now Israel allies. Specifically, ISIS has proclaimed that "It has no hostility towards Israel as it has never attacked them", and this demonic pig fucker, and his al Quaeda faction were simply paid by big and little Satans to overthrow Syria's leadership.
unfairly dismissive of what he’s actually done for Syria since he’s come to power.
Make Syria a Zionist client state? the BS about "previous authoritarian" needs to stop, as pluralism in Syria, much higher than regional peers including Israel, is the reason he was overthrown.
- Assad was one of the worlds most brutal dictators, Syria has moderated a ton in many many other ways. Is this a great outcome? No, there are far better factions that could have won the civil war, but Assad being overthrown is undeniably a good thing.

that's a nervous smile. He's questioning whether this will become the newest beheading video.

Which one?
- ¿Por qué no los dos?

The orange cancer whored out our country's decency. They paid him so ofc he is all smiles.

So fucking vile.

Looks like the libs on here once again forgot who they support in Syria, lmao. Never gets old.

I swear, it's like you treat the whole world like your sandbox, building up castles and knocking them over without a care in the world. One moment a man is a hero and everyone who doesn't support putting him into power is a fascist or something, then, you just carelessly forget and the next time you see him, he's evil and must be removed.

This is exactly why Americans are so dangerous to the world and need to be contained and kept in check. Because at the end of the day, if you're someone in a position like his, no matter what you do to supplicate or reason with them, Americans will devastate your country at the drop of a hat, because they're not even paying attention.

Looks more and more like the potato that got lost in the back of your kitchen cabinet every day.

That's the beauty of American politics.

If you're a partisan, of either color, your principles are matter of convenience and nothing more.