He has drastically downsized our presence in the region, but the DoD and State Department will to resist a full pull-out for as long as possible. You guys keep forgetting; with this shit going on for almost twenty years now, an entire generation of upper level leadership has known nothing but their entire careers.  It’s emotional, it’s personal, egos are wrapped up in this, twenty years of “professional education” propaganda has left them sure that nation building is not only effective but a moral imperative, and they aren’t going to let it go without a fight.