The president, reversing course on an apparent agreement, has blown up a bipartisan spending deal and left the government closed as his third year in office looms. With Congress having left town Saturday, parts of the federal government is set to remain shut until Thursday, at least. With a few Twitter keystrokes, Trump has altered American influence in the Middle East, vowing to pull U.S. troops out of Syria and remove a significant number from Afghanistan, massive decisions that went against the advice of his top military aides. In response, his most widely respected cabinet member, Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis resigned with a scathing letter that made clear he felt Trump was damaging alliances that had set the world order. Mattis has been seen in the U.S. and overseas as a steady counter to the president’s mood swings,