Afghanistan

[voice]

Cracks in the cult as reality bites.

Senior Trump Officials Rip Former Boss for Afghanistan Pact: ‘The Taliban Didn’t Defeat Us. We Defeated Ourselves.’

For days now, former President Donald Trump has tried to pin the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban squarely on his successor, President Joe Biden. But several top officials in his administration are calling out their former boss for trying to distance himself from a fire they believe he started.

Wednesday, H.R. McMaster — Trump’s former national security adviser — laid blame squarely at the feet of Trump and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for signing what he deems an ill-fated deal with the Taliban in February 2020.

“Our secretary of state signed a surrender agreement with the Taliban,” McMaster said. “This collapse goes back to the capitulation agreement of 2020. The Taliban didn’t defeat us. We defeated ourselves.”

Mark Esper — in a CNN International interview Tuesday — maintained that Trump’s vocal impatience with wanting U.S. troops out of Afghanistan had a significant impact on the situation.

“My concern was that President Trump, by continuing to want to withdraw American forces out of Afghanistan, undermined the agreement,” Esper said. “Which is why in the fall, when he was calling for a return of U.S Forces by Christmas, I objected and formally wrote a letter to him. A memo based on recommendations from the military chain of command and my senior civilian leadership that we not go further, that we not reduce below 4,500 troops — unless and until conditions were met by the Taliban. Otherwise, we would see a number of things play out, which are unfolding right now in many ways.”

www.mediaite.com/news/senior-trump-officials-rip-former-boss-for-afghanistan-pact-the-taliban-didnt-defeat-us-we-defeated-ourselves/

So a terrible deal by a terrible President. Granted Biden being handed a ah!t sandwich didn't mean he had to eat it.

[perrykneeham]

What the Taliban appears to have captured is the station fire dump. All of tha looks u/s if not scrapped. "Instruction Use Only" I expect. Also M-16s and APCs. They could have bought those in Walmart.

I must say was surprised to see the Taliban toting M-16s by choice. We were always given to understand that no self-respecting Taliban warrior would be seen dead with anything other that an AK47. Maybe they're sick of the weight.

[voice]

Well the fact you'd struggle to hit a barn door with an AK47 on full auto might be part of it.

[rick49]

Aug 20, 2021 20:50:10 GMT perrykneeham said:

What the Taliban appears to have captured is the station fire dump. All of tha looks u/s if not scrapped. "Instruction Use Only" I expect. Also M-16s and APCs. They could have bought those in Walmart.

I must say was surprised to see the Taliban toting M-16s by choice. We were always given to understand that no self-respecting Taliban warrior would be seen dead with anything other that an AK47. Maybe they're sick of the weight.

point is bugout joe donated a huge cache of military equipment to the taliban.

[voice]

All the hysteria from the right about US leaving Afghani allies behind, Graham saying today Biden should be impeached is even a single one is left behind, is, as you'd expect, totally undermined by what looser boy was doing his best to stop, namely making sure no Afghans could ever get a visa to escape.

Former Pence aide says Trump and Stephen Miller fought against taking Afghan refugees with ‘racist hysteria’
Olivia Troye slammed previous administration’s failure to help allies who were ‘lifelines’ in Afghanistan

A former White House Homeland Security official has accused the Trump administration of deliberately obstructing visa processing for US allies in Afghanistan.

In a series of posts on Twitter, Olivia Troye, who served as an aide to former Vice President Mike Pence, eviscerated the previous administration’s actions, which she said were steeped in racism.

www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-visas-afghan-refugees-troye-b1906190.html

Still hypocracy is a way of life on the right.

[unclejunior]

So has Sleepy Joe quit yet ?
When is Kamalas inauguration??
Even El Beeb & CNN are turning on him...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-58285923

[ootlg]

"On Friday, Mr Biden again rejected the notion of an intelligence failure, saying there was a "consensus" among officials that the Taliban surging to power this quickly was "highly unlikely"."

So how come we knew (some of us here) last week the Taliban would be in Kabul within the week? Seemed obvious, no?

[sweet soul]

Sad scenes in Afghanistan. How could they not know this would happen.?

[sweet soul]

Wont end well for the whole region and they surely must have known that so why has this happened? Makes me mad.

[bertruss2]

Aug 21, 2021 9:16:34 GMT ootlg said:

"On Friday, Mr Biden again rejected the notion of an intelligence failure, saying there was a "consensus" among officials that the Taliban surging to power this quickly was "highly unlikely"."

So how come we knew (some of us here) last week the Taliban would be in Kabul within the week? Seemed obvious, no?

You might know it but you wouldn't admit it if you were a politician. Bad for your image to sound defeatist. The Republicans weren't saying "it's all over" either. They waited till the Taliban took over and they could start blaming Biden.

[bertruss2]

Wont end well for the whole region

Quite a lot depends on whether the Americans try to stir up civil war. There is every chance that the Taliban can form a coalition government with other factions and bring peace to the country. Granted it will be peace under the barbaric traditions of sharia law but it was a fundamentalist Islamic society anyway. Not so much among the metropolitan elite of Kabul, but in most of Afghanistan.

[perrykneeham]

I see that Pen Farthing is mewling and puking all over the media about the prioritisation of middle class Afghan veterinary nurses and orphaned puppies.

I wish them all the best, but I do find the shameless manipulation of the media and the abuse of immigration criteria to be deeply nauseating. I will be disgusted if we give special treatment to his employees and provide cargo space for animals. They want their bumps read.

Apparently, he's not leaving without them. Stay then. Good luck.

I expect a deal will be done.

[mids]

Has Biden been toppled yet?

[perrykneeham]

It's difficult to see him getting a second term after this.

[Repat Van]

Aug 21, 2021 10:48:27 GMT perrykneeham said:

I see that Pen Farthing is mewling and puking all over the media about the prioritisation of middle class Afghan veterinary nurses and orphaned puppies.

I wish them all the best, but I do find the shameless manipulation of the media and the abuse of immigration criteria to be deeply nauseating. I will be disgusted if we give special treatment to his employees and provide cargo space for animals. They want their bumps read.

Apparently, he's not leaving without them. Stay then. Good luck.

I expect a deal will be done.

You’re being weird again. In thinking “middle class” women will somehow be immune to Taliban misogyny.

[perrykneeham]

You're being wilfully perverse again.
Why should they be given special treatment?

[voice]

[rick49]

pelosi-"everything sounds like it's in a good place."

[wetkingcanute]

Hi Sweet Soul

[perrykneeham]

Raining in Polzeath, is it? So much for the Spanish Plume. Typical EU, not delivering.