Trump mused about cutting troops in Europe by a third to send a message to NATO

[Dulcinea]

(CNN) Ankara, Turkey — As President Donald Trump was raging during a White House meeting this spring that fellow members of the NATO alliance had refused to join his military operation in Iran, he had a thought.

What if he cut American forces in Europe by a third, he asked, according to two people familiar with the conversation. Would that send the so-called allies the right message?

Around the time Trump floated his withdrawal idea, the Pentagon abruptly canceled two US military deployments to Europe and ordered the removal of other personnel from the continent.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth planned to announce at a June NATO meeting even steeper cuts that could add up to the one-third reduction Trump raised, according to two people familiar with the matter. But the plan changed after consultations with other senior administration officials, and Hegseth instead unveiled a six-month review of US forces in Europe.

https://www.cnn.com/2026/07/07/politics/trump-nato-troops-europe

[Biophilic]

1. God, they are just so f'ing stupid.

[CanonRay]

2. After his 90 minute call with Putin, of course.

[lark]

3. Yep, one 90 min call with Putin and he's spewing Russian talking points to the world.

Proving without a doubt he's Putin's idiotic puppet.

[Midnight Writer]

4. At the same time he is asking for a half-trillion in additional military spending to "fix" our military.

We've lost the trust and alliances of our friends so that he can curry favor with our enemies.