Donald Trump is hardly the first American president to embrace Middle Eastern autocrats, although it is fair to say that his genuine enthusiasm for them is unprecedented. True to form, he sees right-wing strongmen as a guarantee of stability in a region that is otherwise alien and full of dangerous characters. The problem, of course, is that time refuses to stand still, and the autocrats eventually die, or get displaced. Then what?
It’s not hard to imagine Trump using American troops to reinstall, say, Sisi or MBS if a second Arab Spring comes to town. You can even imagine him doing it as a joint venture with the Russians. If he does, all hell is going to break loose, both domestically and internationally.
Remember–you heard it here first. The issue is going to come up. It’s just a matter of time.