Writes Elizabeth Drew in "Joe Biden's Afghan Nightmare" (Project Syndicate).
ADDED: Rereading this, I laughed at "dented his reputation as a nice guy."
September 9, 2021
"... Biden’s decisions on withdrawal were mostly buttressed by his long-held belief that, when al-Qaeda was driven out of Afghanistan and Osama bin Laden killed, America’s strategic needs had been met."
"Despite his deep convictions about the correctness of his decisions, Biden brought trouble on himself by offering cheery predictions – such as that the Afghan government wouldn’t fall any time soon. When that proved unrealistic, Biden became defensive, even belligerent, which dented his reputation as a nice guy.
Another factor that may have played a role in shaping Biden’s Afghan policy is the striking difference in the nature of the president’s foreign and defense policy team and his domestic policy advisers. The latter is comprised of former mayors, governors, members of congress, and at least one business executive – people of independent standing. But Biden’s national security team is dominated by former aides. The soft-spoken Secretary of State Antony Blinken is a loyal, longtime Biden adviser. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, a youthful-looking 44, was Biden’s national security adviser as vice president. Biden often cites the concurrence of his advisers as confirmation of the wisdom of his decisions, but one gets the strong impression that he makes clear to them what advice he wants."
Writes Elizabeth Drew in "Joe Biden's Afghan Nightmare" (Project Syndicate).
Writes Elizabeth Drew in "Joe Biden's Afghan Nightmare" (Project Syndicate).
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45 comments:
Once again Biden is wrong about foreign policy.
Any time he utters the word 'Bin Laden,' a disclaimer should be automatically made that Biden voted 'No' when the time came to kill the bastard.
How was that even a close call?
Joe Biden is not having a nightmare.
The people he betrayed are having a nightmare. Thousands of people are being held hostage and murdered.
Thousands of women are being raped repeatedly.
That is a nightmare.
Joe Biden is just the figurehead that made it happen. Everyone in his regime should be handed over to the Taliban in an exchange for those he left behind.
All of this was easily predictable.
We should include the shitty people that voted for him. The 60-65 million of them. There are many women and children in Afghanistan that will make better Americans than them. There are people all around the world that are more deserving of freedom.
"Another factor that may have played a role in shaping Biden's" policy
is that he is a senile demented old fool.
So; Seriously? What Difference does it (did it?) make what Jo Biden wants?
They've instructed him not to take questions
He'll get in trouble if he doesn't do what They say
I doubt that "They" let Jo pick what flavor of ice cream he gets;
he certainly doesn't get to pick how many scoops he gets
"They" are responsible for this disaster, "They" brought it on themselves
A US friendly Afghanistan government served to help the US counter Chinese expansion in central Asia, which is important since Chinese rail and pipeline and mining operations all serve to help sustain it in any future conflicts with the US, as well as strengthen Chinese alliances with Pakistan and Iran, who can assist the Chinese in denying access to the Indian ocean and the Horn of Africa, cutting off shipping.
I'm convinced that the Biden admin had an agreement with Pakistan that the latter would keep the Taliban under control for a few months longer, allowing the US a "graceful" exit and the illusion that the Afghan government was maintaining the fight, before Pakistan and China stepped in to mediate a new "unity" government. Instead, they got played, and the Pakistanis made sure that all the key Afghan leaders were bought off or scared into fleeing the country.
The only bright side is that the Taliban seem to be suckered into China's Belt-and-Road con. Judging by the way the Chinese have screwed other countries who signed on, the Taliban may find themselves in rough shape in a few years.
I'm reading about the War of the Roses, and Henry VI
I bet Henry didn't get to pick what flavor of ice cream he ate, either
I have never ever thought of Joe Biden as a nice guy. Ever. Blowhard, vain, bully, dumb, but never nice.
Joe Smith said...
Once again Biden is wrong about foreign policy.
Any time he utters the word 'Bin Laden,' a disclaimer should be automatically made that Biden voted 'No' when the time came to kill the bastard.
How was that even a close call?
From an operational standpoint that mission was very risky.
I would have loved to go on it, but the decision to execute that mission had a lot of arguments against it. They were in Pakistani airspace for a long time in not particularly fast or stealthy vehicles. That would have been my biggest concern.
"his long-held belief that, when al-Qaeda was driven out of Afghanistan and Osama bin Laden killed, America’s strategic needs had been met."
Cuz, of course, once driven out, having learned their lesson, they would stay out.
Anyway, you could make the case that the risk of AQ and ISIS regrouping in Afghanistan was low enough to change our cost-benefit calculation about staying vs. leaving--taking into account, of course, that our continued presence hardly meant "war" and that the costs were manageable. But acting on such a "long-held belief," without more, is an insane way of making policy.
Biden has a reputation for being competent, compassionate and now a "nice guy."
Really, are not these MSM hacks embarrassed at how they pull this nonsense out of their ass? No one ever thought any of these things about Biden -- who really had a reputation for being a buffoon and clown -- before he had the fortune of running against Trump.
A Biden white wash -- blatantly obvious cover-up of a series of tragic blunders.
As bad as the aftermath was, I give joe credit for standing up to the media and deep state by ending the war. Of course, he deserves a lot of blame for what went down, as he was also one of this dumb war’s many architects and supporters.
I loved a lot of donald’s rhetoric about the war, and there many reasons why it may have better for him to end it than joe, but I’ll take what I can get. Unfortunately Americans do not seem to have learned any lessons about the folly of military interventionism and “nation building.” I predict we’ll see a repeat of Afghanistan possibly somewhere else in 10 years or so.
when al-Qaeda was driven out of Afghanistan and Osama bin Laden killed, America’s strategic needs had been met."
In all fairness to the Ultra-Maroon Joe Biden, a LOT of people commenting here have expressed the same idea. People who laugh at Biden and consider themselves conservative (and I'm not talking about you-know-who).
Anyone thinking that is, as aforementioned, an ultra-maroon. The strategic reason for REMAINING in Afghanistan was to deny that region to the enemy as a base of operations and safe haven for terrorists. Remaining as long as it takes. Remaining for as long as the war goes on.
A war that has already gone on for 1400 years and WILL GO ON for the rest of our lives. Most people realized on September 12 at the latest that this war would go on and on and on, even if today they live in a September 10 world.
She writes, “Republicans, who had been frustrated in their search for an effective means to attack Biden, have seized the opportunity provided by the chaotic withdrawal…” That to me is her main premise and reason for writing. She glosses over the hostages and stranded allies by praising the “120,000 people” of completely unknown provenance whom we have brought here INSTEAD OF our fellow citizens. Typical progressive activism wearing an “analysis” disguise. She knows he’s surrounded by yes-men who fear he’ll go off-script and talk about Beau — but Republicans pouncing is the real enemy. What a piece of shit.
'From an operational standpoint that mission was very risky.'
Then let's disband all of our special forces in the military.
'Risky' is the only reason they exist. And fuck Pakistan.
Abandoning the Bagram air base first is still mystifying to me. This screw up is so blatant it almost feels like the powers that be failed our nation on purpose. Somehow 80 plus million people voted for this guy....(eyes rolling)
Drew is still alive? Can we have retirement law for pundits, please?
Anyway, Biden was right to withdraw, but did it badly. The real villians are Obama and Bush who kept the war going and killed 2,300 Americans without any expectation of victory. And the evil creeps like Bush, Romney, Millay, Pelosi, etc. who made it impossible for Trump to withdraw.
Can we move on, now?
There is no difference between his domestic and foreign policy advisors. Those 'independent' former mayors, governors, and members of congress are party apparatchiks, which is why they got those positions. They are neither independent thinkers, nor any threat to impose an independent action. They are in place precisely because they will not go outside their clearly marked boundaries. I would say that, if anything, his foreign policy team, though completely incompetent, liars, and ill-suited for these serious positions, are at least smart enough to have ideas, albeit bad ones. The domestic team are just party hacks. No ideas. Nothing there. Just spend other people's money. It's what they've done their entire careers.
She states that "Biden often cites the concurrence of his advisers as confirmation of the wisdom of his decisions, but one gets the strong impression that he makes clear to them what advice he wants." But no one outside of those on payroll at our major corporate media outlets think for a minute that Joe Biden gives anyone clear advice on what he wants. Aside from Chocolate with sprinkles. And frankly, every President who has any modicum of leadership gives clear advice on what he wants. That is the job of a Chief Executive. That should be clear. A given. That Elizabeth Drew has to state it out loud in regard to Biden seems to me an example of her coming to his defense against those of us who think there is no defense of him.
Biden’s domestic policy is worse than his foreign policy.
Biden is incompetent. Biden’s advisors are incompetent.
The people he betrayed are having a nightmare. Thousands of people are being held hostage and murdered.
Thousands of women are being raped repeatedly.
That is a nightmare.
Sorry, the people commenting here think that is a problem only because it is happening now, shortly after the U.S. retreat. If the U.S. had had that "orderly withdrawal" and gotten every citizen and Afghan ally out, they apparently would have been perfectly fine with this hell of a nightmare happening six months from now.
Thankfully, Biden's complete CF of the situation allows them to deflect from their own reprehensible "f*ck 'em, not our problem" attitude toward the innocent Afghan people.
She also wrote, “Defense Department officials insist that no one warned them that the Afghan army would collapse within 11 days.” Which tickled the remnant of my journalistic instinct and I have questions for her:
1. Who? Who said that.
2. Where? Where’s the quotation, the attribution.
3. What? What exactly WERE they told if this vital info didn’t make the briefing.
4. Why? Why didn’t she follow up to clarify this very broad unbelievable statement.
5. How? How did the DoD officials miss the ubiquitous published reports including the NYT all through 2020 up to the bug-out explicitly detailing the Taliban taking over various regional capitals? Even if they weren’t briefed millions of Americans like me saw the reports more than once.
Again I question the motive and purpose of this article. This is another example of why conservatives hate the media: their feigned amnesia.
Ms Drew sets up a comparison between Biden’s foreign and domestic advisors, those of independent standing (domestic side) and those who’ve been long term aides (foreign side). This seems hollow to me because the domestic affairs are nothing to write home about either - border crisis, inflation, COVID confusion, and crime surge, to name but a few of the severely broken areas that are a result of Biden’s directed policies.
Mr Wibble said...
A US friendly Afghanistan government served to help the US counter Chinese expansion in central Asia
Which leads directly to This news item China is considering deploying military personnel and economic development officials to Bagram airfield, perhaps the single-most prominent symbol of the 20-year U.S. military presence in Afghanistan.
See? The Chinese are smart enough to know
first thing you get: Bagram
Last thing you lose: Bagram
There's a book to be written about how Biden developed a reputation as a nice guy. It was certainly nothing he did, because he's been a bully and a blowhard and a fabulist his entire career in politics--an ass who attacks anyone below the line with the temerity to challenge him on anything. And then there was his close friendship with a true scumbag racist, James Eastland. Biden was actually proud of it.
*And let's not forget his lying for decades about who killed his wife and child. How nice is that?
What I want to know is how'd they get him to stop groping the women and the kids like a creepy televangelist?
Hat tip to Donald Trump for taking the first important steps to end the wanton slaughter and graft cash grab. Biden would have never had the stones to pull out if Donald didn't get the ball rolling. Mission Accomplished.
I testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee in 1977 and had encounters with Biden before, during and after the hearing. He was an overbearing ignoramus then, characterized by the Senator who invited me to testify, a Democrat, as “an asshole.” What’s changed?
The “nice guy” stuff is another leftmedia fairy tale.
"Deep convictions"?
For the first 45 years Joe's convictions were limited to making money, sex, and status. For the remainder of his years in decline he has no convictions, his thoughts are transitory, and he regurgitates policy fed to him by others (except when his temper appears in incoherent out bursts).
His "long-held belief" doesn't seem to have been in evidence under Pres. Barack Obama, who called for a massive Surge in Afghanistan. Or did the article carefully describe his belief in a way that kinda lasted till the end of Obama's presidency?
Al Qaeda being driven out of Afghanistan and Osama's death are 2 events separated by a decade of time. In that decade, Joe Biden was very much in favor of the endless years of nation building that Afghanistan became. Biden didn't realize squat. He wanted a photo op for 9/11/21. His staff have him one.
If the U.S. had had that "orderly withdrawal" and gotten every citizen and Afghan ally out, they apparently would have been perfectly fine with this hell of a nightmare happening six months from now.
Yes. I am perfectly willing to let "the innocent Afghan people" go to hell in their own way.
This is not a case of a small, defiant country being crushed by a foreign conqueror. This is a case of "the innocent Afghan people" choosing to allow one native Afghan faction to rule the country. They had twenty years of us arming and training them to be able to resist, and they rolled over for the Taliban while we were still not yet out.
Afghanistan under the Taliban is Afghanistan under the rule of "the innocent Afghan people". I think it's an unfortunate choice, but I certainly don't think it's my choice to make.
Oh no, China is "making a move" in Central Asia. better move those risk armies over. Better be careful, We may lose the Ukraine. The Ukraine is next, Newman. The Ukraine is weak.
Here's the thing. The whole of middle east, except for the Persian gulf oil, could sink into the earth tommorrow and it would make ALMOST zero difference to the USA. But "The Great Game is afoot" and all the world crusaders and foreign policy ex-burts are excited over china doing this and china doing that.
Biden's "nice guy" act is a fraud. I give him credit for being a mildly effective politician who got along with a few Republicans over the years. Certainly not the worst kind of person to be a legislator. There are worse things than an oily, phony-baloney, narcissistic, back-slappin moron.
The problem is he's neither decent enough nor smart enough to be a leader. As a result, his inauthentic "nice guy" shtick rubs a lot of people the wrong way, and there's just too much evidence out there that he's a totally self-absorbed sociopath. His long history of plagiarism, beginning in school and continuing well into adulthood. His disgraceful lies about the trucker who (faultlessly) was involved in an auto accident with Biden's wife and children. His perpetual "my dear son Beau died" sob story, with his baseless speculation that the war caused his cancer -- which he tells to Gold Star parents to make their grief all about him.
If he was ever smart enough to fake it convincingly, he certainly isn't smart enough these days. He's too old and addled now. Physically and mentally decrepit. Often confused and quick to anger. Definitely not a nice guy.
You can't spell bin Laden without B-I-D-E-N...
Really, are not these MSM hacks embarrassed at how they pull this nonsense out of their ass?
Nothing is too embarrassing for Elizabeth Drew to write.
I hope we don't find out that our presence in Afghanistan over the last 20 years DID have benefits...
'You can't spell bin Laden without B-I-D-E-N...'
And the is no 'Me' in 'Team.'
Wait...
We should have gotten out of Afghanistan ten years ago.
But not this way. The "plan" was so chaotic that I wonder who is in charge of the US military.
I assume it is REMFs like Milley and Austin.
Reminder to everyone with a memory of 1987: Joe was a laughingstock and was humiliated out of the presidential primary.
Also, Tara Reid could not be reached for comment apparently.
A reminder of his "niceness":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1j0FS0Z6ho
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gmW_CLyjqgY&t=10s
I never understood how this 5 minute video never made the rounds in 2020.
Just kidding!
rcocean said...
Here's the thing. The whole of middle east, except for the Persian gulf oil, could sink into the earth tommorrow and it would make ALMOST zero difference to the USA
Two years ago, Persian gulf oil made ALMOST zero difference to the USA
We weren't just energy independent; we were an oil Exporter!
Thanx Jo Biden! Thanx for F*cking US, in the ass
Hey, Fat, there is a mountain of evidence that Biden is a blowhard a-hole.
"Defense Department officials insist that no one warned them that the Afghan army would collapse within 11 days.”
Who were these dopes expecting to warn them? After 20 years of establishing an Afghan army, these "officials" are the ones who should most know their capabilities. That quote seems so laughable as to be completely made up.
It's as if the "defense department officials" staggered out of the rubble at the Pentagon on 9/11 and said "Hey, nobody warned us there were a bunch of suicidal Saudis in jets headed our way!"
That's your freakin' jobs
Idiots.
Althouse writes, "Rereading this, I laughed at 'dented his reputation as a nice guy.'"
Well...It sorta depends on how one defines a dent. The optimists aboard Titanic probably assumed that inconvenient iceberg just left a dent.
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