Guest Post by Pat Buchanan
Say what you will about President Joe Biden, he has stuck to his guns on ending America’s 20-year involvement in Afghanistan’s forever war.
His decision not to delay our departure after Aug. 31 was fortified by hard intel that the terrorist ISIS-K was preparing attacks at Kabul airport.
Thursday evening, the two bomb attacks occurred.
It now seems inevitable that the withdrawal will be completed by Aug. 31, with all U.S. military forces following the last civilians out.
Before yesterday’s attacks, the airlift had been going far better than in its chaotic first days. Some 100,000 Americans and Afghans had gotten out of the country since Aug. 14.
Biden held his ground, refusing to be stampeded by Democratic critics, NATO allies, Republican hawks or media demanding he extend the deadline for departure until all Americans were out.
His adamancy testifies to the convictions Biden came by during decades at the apex of the U.S. government during our longest war.
Those convictions:
Even if the end result of a withdrawal is that Afghanistan falls to the Taliban, the cause is not worth a continuance of the U.S. commitment or the blood and treasure that four presidents have invested.
Better to accept a U.S. defeat and humiliation than re-commit to a war that is inevitably going to be lost.
Biden’s decision and the botched early days of the withdrawal have not been without political cost. Polls show the president’s approval rating sliding underwater. A Suffolk poll has him down to 41%.
Yet, on his basic decision to get out now and accept the costs and consequences, his country appears to be with him. After all, former President Donald Trump was prepared to depart earlier than Aug. 31, and a majority of Americans still support the decision to write off Afghanistan and get out.
Still, we need to realize what this means and what is coming.
According to the secretary of state, 6,000 Americans were still in Afghanistan when the Afghan army collapsed and Kabul fell. Some 4,500 of these have now been evacuated.
The State Department is in touch with 500 other U.S. citizens to effect their departure. As for the remaining 1,000, we do not know where they are.
What does this mean?
Hundreds of Americans are going to be left behind, along with scores of thousands of Afghan allies who worked with our military or contributed to the cause of crushing the Taliban. And many of those Afghans are going to pay the price of having cast their lot with the Americans.
After Aug. 31, the fate of those left behind will be determined by the Taliban, and we will be made witness to the fate the Taliban imposes.
This generation is about to learn what it means to lose a war.
When the war for Algerian independence ended in 1962, and the French pulled their troops out, scores of thousands of “Harkis,” Arab and Muslim Algerians who fought alongside the French, were left behind.
The atrocities against the Harkis ran into the tens of thousands. Such may be the fate of scores of thousands of Afghans who fought beside us.
Biden’s diplomats may be negotiating with the Taliban to prevent the war crime of using U.S. citizens left behind as hostages. But we are not going to be able to save all of our friends and allies who cast their lot with us and fought alongside us.
Yet, while the promises of the Taliban are not credible and ought not to be believed, we are not without leverage.
As The New York Times writes, the Afghan economy is “in free fall.”
“Cash is growing scarce, and food prices are rising. Fuel is becoming harder to find. Government services have stalled as civil servants avoid work, fearing retribution.”
The Taliban’s desperate need is for people to run the economy and for money from the international community to pay for imports of food and vital necessities of life.
What will also be needed from us, soon after the fall of Afghanistan, is a reappraisal of America’s commitments across the Middle East.
We have 900 U.S. troops in Syria who control the oil reserves of that country and serve as a shield for the Syrian Kurds.
How long should we keep them there?
We retain several thousand troops in Iraq. Why?
These are questions for which new answers are going to be needed.
Indeed, there will be a temptation to counter our defeat and humiliation with defiant gestures or precipitate action to restore our lost credibility. Henry Kissinger’s advice on any such action today seems wise:
“No dramatic strategic move is available in the immediate future to offset this self-inflicted setback, such as by making new formal commitments in other regions. American rashness would compound disappointment among allies, encourage adversaries, and sow confusion among observers.”
As for Afghanistan and the Kabul airport, there comes a time when even a great nation needs to accept the reality that Corregidor is lost.
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I believe Pat has lost his mind
He’s old too.
My sentiments regarding the article, Pat has gone off the deep end. Biden this and Biden that like Biden is cogent. Biden can’t find his own ass with both hands, he’s trotted out like the meat puppet he is, he flails around, mumbles and then walks off and the media, good little sycophants all, attempt to make sense of what he says and prop him up like he’s viable.
The disaster of the withdrawal process is planned. The weapons, billions of dollars worth, were left there on purpose, ditto with giving the Taliban carte blanche entry into…everything. Why desert Bagram airfield for Kabul? Bagram was logical and practical and could be used sans civilians so of course it had to be abandoned, no maximum confusion could happen at Bagram and no excuses for the necessity of creating the new and improved WAR ON TERROR which will be next on the agenda. The talking heads are already reading their scripts and the new and improved ISIS is now on the stage and ready to roll.
How many believe that the loss of billions worth of military hardware into the hands of the muslim world was an unintentional consequence of a poorly planned withdrawal?
Let me remind you all that it’s highly likely that Obama (former muslim in the White House) is one of those in the background pulling the strings.
No it’s all going according to plan.
Does anyone get the sick feeling that there are unseen forces attempting to “Fundamentally Transform the US” into a Failed State?
I got that sick feeling back when the muslim mulatto was elected. I fretted about it during the shrub reign too but not so much as when Barky appeared. Trump was a four year temporary hiatus and now the destruction is full steam ahead…choo choo….
He lost it on the way to believing trad US media:
“New York Times writes, the Afghan economy is “in free fall.””
China will probably not let that happen.
Maye you could do better,
I watched the Pentagon briefing this morning and heard something that was not said.
I went looking for videos of the US troops at the airport and discovered some lovely young women (at least they appeared to be young women) soldiers assisting the people lined up inside.
Then, the video went outside and I saw all the burly young soldiers manning their weapons.
It seemed somewhat sexist but it appears the female soldiers are inside the airport out of sight.
I wonder how many people have daughters inside that airport and if they are actually being ordered to stay inside?
It may not be better but it is something we need to think about. What happens if/when?
Everyone needs to prepare themselves for what is coming. I saw a short clip of Taliban training to fly the BlackHawk helicopters they now own.
Sorry, I need to take that shout out off my name, huh?
Feminism is a farce. It is not sexist.
Pat really needs to retire, if only to preserve what’s left of a once-solid reputation,
He appears to think we’re still in the nineties.
In the US, the worst is yet to come.
That depends on where in the US one is. In some locales waiting them out is an option.
Wait until the the titsucking refugees start filtering out from Ft. Bliss, Ft. Lee, and Ft. McCoy. You can be sure they’re going to be herded into nicely gerrymandered districts to benefit the Usual Suspects.
Watch the hospitalization rates go up just in time for the “next variant” scare to kick off, doubling down on the already high rates due to other titsuckers coming across southern borders.
Europe is going to get more than their fair share of new welfare recipients just as the euro starts tanking again, which pretty much guaranteed once the trillions in US spending hits markets.
Were Xiden grifting off Afghanistan, US military and other resources would not be leaving.
The exfiltration cluster fubar is possibly intentional, why, has yet to become clear.
The cluster FUBAR was done intentionally to strain and collapse social welfare systems in Western economies. That much is certain.
Trump was on Hannity blowing his mouth off during an interview claiming his plan wasn’t followed, which might be true to some degree as Progs avoid anything associated with him like the plague. He was calling his own Cabinet choices “stupid” on live TV, claiming they undermined or subverted any attempt to positively deal with a crisis. Some of that’s true, but it seems he’d like to avoid the blame for choosing the Swamp Creatures in the first place.
Of course he would, he’s a victim like the rest of the victims.
Possibly the worst-argued piece Buchanan has ever written, full of counter-factuals. You don’t have to agree with neocons to want a conditions-based–not date-based–withdrawal plan that was well thought out. We should not have have stayed after bin Laden escaped, but at the very least we shouldn’t have left an $85 billion arsenal for the Taliban, left citizens and (vetted) allies in the lurch. Really dumb piece.
Not removing the equipment first was total incompetence. But let’s be real, no withdrawal from Afghanistan was going to be anything except chaotic.
Yes, but there’s a difference between chaotic and total clusterfuck.
Much of what was taken by the Taliban was abandoned. I saw shipping containers emptied on social media that contained select fire US rifles, semi-auto Benellis, M24’s, and scores of Sig pistols NIB along with the obligatory confiscated AKs.
If, or when the US Balkanizes itself maybe the Russians would see fit to airdrop some of that embargoed weaponry to fan the flames a bit. In Iraq I ended up with a nice black market AKM taken off a real bad dude who didn’t have a need for it where he was going. Had to leave it behind as no war trophies are allowed, but with some skill and luck I could score another one sometime in the future.
A perfect illustration of what the USG does, just to perfect, use our own resources to get Americans killed, if it doesn’t wake people up i don’t know what could.
Proof positive that the dementia guy meets with the CIA and they let him know what there next move will be.
Worse still, it reminds everyone they are actively engaged with Taliban in order to provide not only intel, but marginal security by giving out potential “kill lists” of citizens or allies who haven’t been rescued yet.
It’s a fucking counter-intel trainwreck in motion when hostages are taken and murdered after leaving.
What? Bidens exit is to be commended, without acknowledging his ill conceived military withdrawl a few weeks before, creating the havoc at the Kabul airport, where marine’s lives have now been lost?
Not recognizing Chinas commitment to the Taliban, who will stabilize their economy at the expense of having a go at their rich mineral reserves?
And finally, noting the horror that faces the Afghani peoples who supported the US effort in Afghanistan, and not speaking of the horrors that await those Americans who are stranded, due to this administrations incompetence?
Prayers for the families of our fallen soldiers and for those who are still alive, trying to clean up this mess.
China and other Muslim nations will get prime access to Bagram. Taliban already negotiating with Turks for technical assistance to manage the airports when the time comes.
Time for Pat to give it up. He transformed into just another political parasite long ago.
Over 2,400 military personnel have been killed in Afghanistan over the 20 years and $2 trillion+ of this absolute debacle.
Two wrongs don’t make a right, but there needs to be context here.
The day that any pullout or evacuation was done, there was going to be chaos – today, 2 months from now, or 2 years from now. Biden and the military brass could have done a much better job. Anyone who isn’t an idiot can acknowledge that. But there was no way to pull out cleanly. Wasn’t going to happen.
This is what happens every time an occupying force leaves and the natural order of a society returns.
Has anyone heard an explanation for why they didn’t have people start slowly leaving over a period of time? To avoid this kind of catastrophe.
Sure – The scenario of great confusion is perfect cover for leaving (gifting) Billions of military hardware to the muslim world.
We have leverage??? With a dementia addled prez? And clueless woke Generals?
Admin must be publishing Buchanan ‘s bullshit on TBP out of pity.
Maybe it was a quid pro quo?
Stucky, you dipshit! It is always about the money!!!!
Our leverage is the printing press Joe thinks he’s got a lock on via the Federal Reserve’s control of the debt window. What “Turns his back to go, Joe” doesn’t know is that the debt window is about to move to Taiwan.
That Petro Dollar might just dry up like Dr. Jill’s vajayjay when Joe Biden hobbles toward her nekkid.
He thinks he can keep selling the Taliban weapons and keep his Military Industrial Complex friends happy by doing so. Like Hillary did as Secretary of State.
Look into it.
Hey! Maybe we will get a rerun of this!
So, ole Lunch-bucket Joe is doing a swell job?