Trump’s treatment of Kurds has upset Americans: Democratic Senator

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Americans are "upset" about the way President Donald Trump has treated Kurds who fought side by side with US troops in the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS) in Iraq and Syria, a Democratic senator told Rudaw on Tuesday. 

"I am optimistic. So many people are voting to change in this country. We are upset about so many things, from President Trump's handling of the coronavirus to the way he abandoned our allies in Kurdistan who are such loyal friends of the United States,"  Paul Eric Strauss, an American politician and attorney, serving as the senior United States shadow senator from the District of Columbia, told Rudaw's Zinar Sino. 

"People are upset. People want change. And I think the Joe Biden and Kamala Harris' ticket and the senators that are going to be elected tonight are going to bring that change," Strauss added. 

More than 100 million Americans have already cast their votes for the next US president - over 70% of all votes cast in 2016. 

"I hope this will be a free election. We hope this will be a fair election. American elections have always been an example around the world of how democracy works. But the last one had a lot of problems. We know there are attempts to stop people from voting. Donald Trump and his lawyers are going to court to stop votes from being counted," he said. 

Speaking of when a result will be announced, the senator said it is contingent upon swing states.

"If certain states flip early, if Joe Biden wins Florida, if Joe Biden wins Georgia, if Joe Biden wins North Carolina... we could see the beginning of a real wave for Biden, and maybe that’s it for Donald Trump."

"If Trump can hang on some of those states, or they are close, we may not know for a while," he added.

Strauss also believes that Former Vice President and Democratic candidate Joe Biden would be a better choice for Kurds.

"I think Joe Biden recognizes who America's friends and allies are, or who America's adversaries are. Vladimir Putin is an adversary of the United States and Trump has been more friendly with him than allies like the Kurds or our neighbors and friends in Europe.” 

Turkey went ahead with its long-threatened operation in northeast Syria against the Kurdish-led and US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in early October last year following a phone call between Trump and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, greenlighting Ankara to invade the autonomous region.

"I certainly do not want to say if Joe Biden comes in, everything will be perfect all of a sudden. Everyone has a lot of work to do. But he would never abandon those who fought so closely with America,” Strauss concluded.