Biden "Forcefully" defends Afghan withdrawal

[Copper]

He doesn't have much time left.

They are going to escort him out of office while he babbles.

[Mik]

Yet we are still in Korea and Europe.

[Doctor Phibes]

@mik said in Biden "Forcefully" defends Afghan withdrawal:

Yet we are still in Korea and Europe.

There's typically quite a bit less shooting over there. The biggest threat to US forces in Germany is they discover decent beer.

[Jolly]

@george-k said in Biden "Forcefully" defends Afghan withdrawal:

Todays NYT: In Forceful Defense of Afghan Withdrawal, Biden Says U.S. Achieved Its Objectives

President Biden vigorously defended his decision to end America’s 20-year war in Afghanistan on Thursday, asserting that the United States can no longer afford the human cost or strategic distraction of a conflict that he said had strayed far from its initial mission.

Speaking after the withdrawal of nearly all U.S. combat forces and as the Taliban surge across the country, Mr. Biden, often in blunt and defensive tones, spoke directly to critics of his order to bring an end to American participation in a conflict born from the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. He said the United States would formally end its military mission at the end of August.

“Let me ask those who want us to stay: How many more?” Mr. Biden said in remarks in the East Room of the White House. “How many thousands more American daughters and sons are you willing to risk? And how long would you have them stay?”
Mr. Biden said he was not declaring “mission accomplished,” but he made clear that the future of the country — including the fate of the current government and concerns about the rights of women and girls — was no longer in the hands of the American military.

The war began two decades ago, the president argued, not to rebuild a distant nation but to prevent terror attacks like the one on Sept. 11, 2001, and to bring Osama bin Laden to justice. In essence, Mr. Biden said the longest war in United States history should have ended a decade ago, when Bin Laden was killed.

“We did not go to Afghanistan to nation-build,” he said. “And it’s the right and the responsibility of Afghan people alone to decide their future and how they want to run their country.”

Forceful:

Who you gonna believe, the New York Times or your own lying eyes?

That's literally painful to watch...

[Loki]

China and Afghanistan have a long relationship. Stinger missiles were supplied to them from China to take out Russia. The US did this so as to not piss of Russia. The history of the stingers is here.

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-05-08-mn-1923-story.html

[George K]

[Jolly]

@doctor-phibes said in Biden "Forcefully" defends Afghan withdrawal:

@mik said in Biden "Forcefully" defends Afghan withdrawal:

Yet we are still in Korea and Europe.

There's typically quite a bit less shooting over there. The biggest threat to US forces in Germany is they discover decent beer.

Tell me, how many U.S. combat deaths in Afghanistan has there been in the last couple of years?

The answer may surprise you.

[89th]

@george-k said in Biden "Forcefully" defends Afghan withdrawal:

Funny, I was just thinking earlier today that the situation inside the embassy must be exactly that…destroying materials and packing to leave.

[Mik]

Looking more like the fall of Saigon than ever.

[George K]

@mik said in Biden "Forcefully" defends Afghan withdrawal:

Looking more like the fall of Saigon than ever.

Although the Viet Cong were arguably nicer than the Taliban.

[Jolly]

Heck, you've got to go full Khmer Rouge to get worse than the Taliban...

[Larry]

At least he doesn't say mean things to people like Trump did........

Biden doesn't know where he shit last. He is a fool, and a president FOR fools.

[Jolly]

Resident Biden.

[George K]

@jolly said in Biden "Forcefully" defends Afghan withdrawal:

Resident Biden.

The President has called a lid as of about an hour ago and is departing for a weekend in Delaware.

Edit: Camp David.

[Loki]

This may be a nit but Biden’s opposition was not if but when. His advice was that more confirmation was needed and finally ultimately agreed with Obama.

So it doesn’t demonstrate decisive leadership on his part but anyone who characterizes his opposition as based on taking him out as a bad idea is flat wrong. An authentic criticism is his “flinching” at a key opportunity.

[Larry]

I never thought I'd live to see the day when a president came along who would make Jimmy Carter look good.... but here we are...

[xenon]

We’ve been negotiating with the Taliban for years now.

The writing has been on the wall - Afghanistan was not worth it. The left and right agree to that (including Trump).

Americans want out. This is the inevitable result of pulling out with the Taliban still around.

I don’t get how this would have been diff if we had a diff President.

FWIW - ny personal thought is “you break it, you bought it”, and we should have stuck it out.

I thought that when Trump was preparing the pull out as well.

[Doctor Phibes]

Yeah, there's clearly been a gradual shift towards this over the past 8-12 years.

I'm actually a little surprised it took the US this long to lose interest.

[George K]

Goldberg: Dishonor in Afghanistan

There's a lot of hand-wringing and shoulda coulda, but I don't see him offering an alternative, assuming that the US wants to get out.

If not this way, how?

[xenon]

Dishonor in Afghanistan and dishonor with the Kurds. We’ve been a fickle partner in war lately.

I’m curious how soldiers feel though. I work with a bunch of former officers, I should ask them.