"We recognize the fact that this is unpopular within the beltway. We recognize the fact that it's unpopular within the Defense Department. It’s very popular with ordinary American people," Mulvaney told Fox News.
"This was not a snap decision, and it’s not a surprise to anybody because it’s exactly what the president said he was going to do," Mulvaney added.
Commenting on the resignation of Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and other Pentagon officials over disagreements with the troop pullout, Mulvaney said that it is not Trump's problem that some officials did not support this decision.
Mattis' resignation came a day after the White House said the United States was withdrawing troops from Syria, the plans which the outgoing defense chief has previously slammed as a "strategic blunder." The unexpected move to exit Syria has been widely criticized by many US lawmakers who argued the action would undermine the US security and give away the region to Russia, Iran, and Syria.
