When Trump Played Obama’s Game

The side that should know better.

For decades, the American Right has stood as the loudest, clearest voice defending constitutional liberty, Judeo-Christian values, national sovereignty, and the fight against Islamic conquest. Conservatives have consistently called out the dangers of jihad, condemned regimes built on Sharia, and exposed the repeated betrayals of Democratic foreign policy.

Whether it was the Iran Deal, the rise of ISIS, the flood of Islamic migration into Europe, or the legitimization of jihadist states in the name of diplomacy, the Right has never hesitated to sound the alarm. Talk radio, MAGA influencers, conservative think tanks, and grassroots activists have spent years warning that you cannot negotiate with jihad, you cannot fund terror, and you cannot trade national security for illusions of peace.

They were right.
They had moral clarity. They had conviction. They had truth.

Remember when Obama lifted sanctions on Iran?

The year was 2016. The ink was barely dry on the Iran Nuclear Deal, and Barack Obama unsealed billions of dollars in frozen Iranian assets, lifted sanctions, and sent $1.7 billion in pallets of cash to Tehran. But the groundwork for this betrayal was laid earlier—in 2013, when Obama began secret negotiations that ultimately legitimized the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism.

And the Right? It exploded.

• Senator Ted Cruz called it “the single greatest national security threat facing America.”

• Mike Pompeo—then a Congressman—accused Obama of “funding death to America.”

• Mark Levin declared it a “historic betrayal.”

• Fox News ran segment after segment warning that Obama was empowering jihadists in suits.

• Conservative radio and grassroots movements erupted. Tea Party networks mobilized.
  And even though the “MAGA” brand didn’t formally exist yet, Trump himself joined the chorus, calling it “a disgrace,” and promising to “rip up the deal” if elected.

And they were right.

The Iranian regime didn’t change.
It didn’t moderate.
Tehran used that windfall to fund Hezbollah, back Shia militias in Iraq, and expand its influence across Syria and Yemen.
The chant from Tehran wasn’t peace—it was still “Death to America.”

The Right had every reason to be outraged.
They recognized the danger of legitimizing jihadist regimes.
They warned that suits and diplomatic titles don’t erase decades of blood.

And they were right.

Remember when Biden handed Afghanistan to the Taliban?

It was August 2021. After 20 years of U.S. blood, treasure, and sacrifice, Joe Biden ordered a chaotic, unconditional withdrawal from Afghanistan—abandoning Bagram Air Base, pulling out troops before civilians, and leaving $7 billion worth of U.S. military equipment in the hands of jihadists.

The Taliban didn’t just retake power—they inherited an arsenal.
Armored vehicles. Drones. Aircraft. Night vision.
And they turned Kabul into a victory parade.

And once again—the Right erupted.

• Donald Trump himself called it “the most embarrassing military defeat in the history of our country.”

• Senator Josh Hawley demanded resignations.

• Tucker Carlson aired back-to-back monologues on Biden arming terrorists.

• Candace Owens, Dan Bongino, and the broader MAGA base called it treason, betrayal, and a stain on American honor.

• Gold Star families were brought onto shows to speak through tears.

• For months, conservative media replayed the footage of Afghans clinging to planes, and the names of the 13 U.S. service members killed in the Kabul airport bombing were repeated with righteous fury.

And again—they were right.

The Taliban returned to power stronger than ever, armed by the United States, enforcing Sharia law, executing dissidents, and enslaving women back into full hijab and gender apartheid.
Al-Qaeda regrouped inside Afghan borders, and terror cells celebrated a victory not just on the battlefield—but over the White House.

The Right knew exactly what it meant to reward jihadists with legitimacy.
They saw through the surrender.
They felt the betrayal.
They called it out—loud and clear.

And they were right.

And now, Donald Trump announced the full lifting of U.S. sanctions on Syria—calling it the beginning of a “new era.”
Let’s be brutally clear and call it what it is: Trump handed American recognition—and economic breathing room—to the regime now led by Ahmed al-Sharaa. The same man the U.S. government placed a $10 million bounty on through the Rewards for Justice program—a bounty that remains active to this day.

Better known to U.S. and allied intelligence agencies as Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, al-Sharaa isn’t just some shadowy figure from the past. He is the longtime emir of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS)—a group that emerged directly from Jabhat al-Nusra, itself the official Syrian wing of al-Qaeda.

Al-Sharaa’s “resume” is a catalogue of death, repression, and militant jihad:

• He fought alongside al-Qaeda in Iraq before shifting operations into Syria.

• Under his leadership, HTS instituted Sharia courts known for public executions, amputations, and lashings.

• His fighters kidnapped journalists, assassinated rivals, and massacred Christian and Alawite minorities.

• He provided safe haven and logistical support for foreign jihadists, including fighters linked to 9/11-era networks.

• His group used children as fighters, detained women for violating Islamic dress codes, and turned entire villages into Islamist police states.

He wasn't a bystander. He was a central architect of Syria’s jihadist hellscape.

And now—he rules, not by vote, but by arrangement.

Let that sink in.

Sharaa wasn’t elected through reform. He rose to power just 41 days after the fall of Bashar al-Assad, installed on January 29, 2025 through a Western-backed transition deal brokered by Turkey and Qatar, blessed by the United Nations, and quietly accepted by the White House.

They called it diplomacy. But the truth is, it was a regime swap dressed as peace, where the bullets stopped only long enough for the beards to go undercover.

And in that fragile moment—Trump chose not pressure, not leverage, not containment… but appeasement. He opened the door. Rolled out the rug. Made nice with a man who once ran Sharia death courts.

There were no preconditions. No demands for reform. No disarmament. Just sanctions—gone.

No primetime outrage. No press conferences. No viral fury from MAGA’s loudest voices. The same voices who lit up the airwaves over Obama’s Iran deal and Biden’s Taliban surrender? Now they fall quiet.

Worse—some are applauding it. They call it “realpolitik.” They say it’s a smart move. They repeat White House talking points about “stability,” “reconstruction,” and “economic opportunity.”

The most powerful conservative and MAGA influencers in America just normalized a terror-linked regime by backing Trump’s decision.

Let’s break the illusion.

What message does that send?
That the United States will continue to reward jihadist strongmen—as long as they trade turbans for ties.

This isn’t just dumb. It’s dangerous. Here’s why:
• Iran sees an opening. Reports from Iraqi intelligence confirm renewed efforts to reopen weapons corridors through eastern Syria.
• Hezbollah benefits. A destabilized Syria gives the terror group more room to operate along Israel’s border.
• The Kurds are exposed—again. America's most loyal ground allies are watching their defensive lines shrink without U.S. leverage to back them.
• Jihadist financial networks resurface. With sanctions lifted, front groups once under HTS control can rebrand and re-enter the global economy under “state” status.

And this time, it wasn’t Obama. It wasn’t Biden. It was TRUMP.

You don’t get to scream “America First” while gifting a jihadist regime the legitimacy of open markets and diplomatic recognition. You don’t get to slam the Iran Deal and then applaud Syrian normalization under a man who built his empire on al-Qaeda’s corpse piles.

It’s the same playbook we saw with Obama in Tehran and Biden in Kabul: reward the jihadist, call it peace, close your eyes.

Only this time, it’s coming from the man who built his political legacy on “draining the swamp,” “fighting globalism,” and “never surrendering to Islamic terror.”

And the same people who once saw this danger clearly? Now they call it leadership.

What changed?
Not the enemy. Not the ideology. Not the threat. Only the man behind the 3D chess.

You don’t get to ignore this because it came with a red tie.

We can’t have selective outrage. The names change. The suits get nicer. The beards get trimmed. But the ideology doesn’t fade—it waits. It adapts. And every time, the West takes the bait.

This isn’t strategy. It’s surrender.
No sanctions. No oversight. No red lines. Just a handshake with a smiling executioner.

And the American Right better decide fast: Do we stand on principle—or just follow the man, no matter the cost?

Because this cost is steep. And the bill will come due—in Syria, in Israel, and maybe here at home.

Please support my work by following Live Up To Freedom and LUTF Art Studio.