One of the Trump administration\u2019s first decisions about the fight against the Islamic State was made by Michael Flynn weeks before he was fired \u2013 and it conformed to the wishes of Turkey, whose interests, unbeknownst to anyone in Washington, he\u2019d been paid more than $500,000 to represent.<\/p>\n
Obama\u2019s national security adviser, Susan Rice, explained the Pentagon\u2019s plan to retake the Islamic State\u2019s de facto capital of Raqqa with Syrian Kurdish forces whom the Pentagon considered the U.S.\u2019s most effective military partners. Obama\u2019s national security team had decided to ask for Trump\u2019s sign-off, since the plan would all but certainly be executed after Trump had become president.<\/p>\n
Flynn didn\u2019t hesitate. According to timelines distributed by members of Congress in the weeks since, Flynn told Rice to hold off, a move that would delay the military operation for months.<\/p>\n
Trump eventually would approve the Raqqa plan, but not until weeks after Flynn had been fired.<\/p>\n