Of course, President Trump completely reverse the U.S. government's position on who should rule Libya to back this guy. How could he not, given these factors:
- Field Marshall Khalifa Hifter is an aspiring strongman who "has never shown a willingness to accept any civilian authority."
- Like Trump, Hifter made an unlikely comeback after losing everything. (Hifter commanded Libya's disastrous invasion of Chad in the 1980s, he was captured by Chadian forces, and after the conflict, fled Libya because Qadhafi blamed him for the military loss).
- Hifter is not very competent. The Libyan offensive against Chad failed, in part, because the Libyans tried to use chemical weapons, but the winds shifted and they ended up gassing themselves.
- Hifter is a fraud. He gave himself the title of "Field Marshall." The highest rank he ever actually achieved in the Libyan armed forces was Colonel.
- Trump showed his usual shrewd judgment by coming out in favor of Hifter now, just as he started losing (two weeks ago I thought he would take Tripoli. Now he is losing ground)
- Hifter's current base of operations is Benghazi, which will give Trump an excuse to say that city's name.
- His surname looks a lot like "Hitler" and there is a fair chance that our mentally addled president thinks that is who he is.
