President Trump is still very clear he wants US troops out of Syria, and has even ordered commanders to quickly wrap up military operations in the country. It doesn't seem to be happening, however, as White House officials have been feverishly backpedaling from the president's comments.

President Trump was said to have been pushing for a withdrawal for months behind the scenes, and comments over the past week seemingly made that formal policy. Though Trump advisers are said to have drawn up plans for a pullout, they proposed an alternative plan to Trump, where they don't leave at all.

White House indications are that Trump isn't getting his way, and that instead the US is going to just stay in Syria to "eliminate the small ISIS presence" that yet remains. Since the US hasn't been fighting ISIS on the ground in quite some time, there's no timetable for that.

Administration officials seem to be eager to present this as something short of overruling Trump, which legally they couldn't actually do.