Donald Trump
Michael Hughes: The Taliban stroked President Donald Trump’s ego with a love letter that directly led to the administration’s decision to accelerate negotiations, strike the Doha deal, and withdraw forces from Afghanistan, ending a 20-year conflict. However, the Trump 2.0 administration is dangerous because the man does not need to get re-elected. Trump does not even need to satiate his base. All Trump cares about now is his legacy – which includes not being made to look the fool.
This could go one of two ways: Trump chills and enjoys the ride or, now unhindered, acts out even more aggressively in knee-jerk reaction to any and all perceived slights. And this version of Trump the Taliban should fear.