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There are honest uses of "SUPPORT THE TROOPS", like promoting improved healthcare for veterans.

Of course, it's also a way to phrase something like "support the war" while being hard to argue with. Like "pro life" and "pro choice". Both deliberate naming schemes to make a position seem hard to argue with.

"Support the troops" was always "Support the war" and it was designed that way. In my view the best that could be done to support the troops would be to bring them home and think twice about foreign adventures.

If troops are agents of war, and you don't support war, why would you support troops?

I suspect it's meant for people that oppose the "current war" versus "any and all war".

One of my favorite stand-up routines talks about the infamous bumper sticker philosophy, and what happened when the person moved from a left-leaning location to a right-leaning one. https://youtu.be/pKBKLeTZbM4

“SUPPORT THE TROOPS” is newspeak for "SUPPORT THE WAR."