Trump: Promises Kept / Promises Broken: on War & Peace

Donald Trump: 2012: No war with Iran; 2020: assassinates Iranian general

Speaking on the Sean Hannity radio show in January 2012, Trump predicted, "I say that [Obama] starts a war in Iran before the election. He'll start a war; lives will be wasted for no reason."

Speaking on the Laura Ingraham Show in April 2012 [and other times], Trump repeated his prediction: "I happen to think that the president is going to start a war with Iran. I think it'll be a short term popular thing to do. And I think he's going to do that for political reasons."

Donald Trump: One-time missile strike in response to Syria chemical attack

The missile strike, in response to a chemical weapons attack, was intended to be a limited, one-time operation, and the president seemed determined to quickly move on. Critics, including Senator Marco Rubio, argued that Syria's President Assad felt free to launch a chemical attack precisely because the Trump administration had given him a green light.

Trump's action in Syria was welcomed by many traditional American allies who had fretted over Obama's reluctance to take a greater leadership role in the Middle East. After the missile strike, Israeli news outlets were filled with headlines like "The Americans Are Back," and European leaders expressed relief both that he had taken action and that he had not gone too far.

Donald Trump: OpEd: now believes that US has national interest in Syria

Donald Trump: Stay out of Syria, and keep Syrians out of America

Twitter posting from @realDonaldTrump on Syria intervention:
• 8:33 PM 15 Jun 2013
  We should stay the hell out of Syria, the "rebels" are just as bad as the current regime. WHAT WILL WE GET FOR OUR LIVES & $BILLIONS? ZERO
• 8:19 AM 29 Aug 2013
  If we are going to continue to be stupid and go into Syria, as they say in the movies, SHOOT FIRST AND TALK LATER!
• 8:25 AM 29 Aug 2013
  Let the Arab League take care of Syria. Why are these rich Arab countries not paying us for the tremendous cost of such an attack?
• 2:14 PM 29 Aug 2013
  What will we get for bombing Syria besides more debt and a possible long term conflict? Obama needs Congressional approval.
• 8:54 AM 17 Nov 2015
  Refugees from Syria are now pouring into our great country. Who knows who they are--some could be ISIS. Is our president insane?
• 11:55 AM 24 Mar 2016
  Europe and the U.S. must immediately stop taking in people from Syria. This will be the destruction of civilization as we know it! So sad!

Donald Trump: 2013: warned Obama against bombing Syria; 2017: bombed Syria

Nearly four years later, now president himself and grappling with how to respond to another chemical weapons attack by the Syrian government, Trump ignored his own warnings and did what Obama threatened but never carried out: order a missile strike targeting assets of President Assad.

To understand the magnitude of Trump's reversal, look at his Twitter account. Trump posted dozens of tweets about the conflict in the years before he declared his candidacy for the White House, and frequently did so during the campaign as well. He carved out a staunchly noninterventionist stance on the conflict and criticised Obama's approach as plodding. But he also made one thing clear: If he was in charge, any action would be swift and secretive to catch Assad off guard.