Even in this carefully filtered form, the story is damning.
During an Aug. 6 meeting, a National Security Council official, who is not identified in the report, appeared to lack a sense of urgency and told others involved that if the United States had to execute an evacuation, it would signal “we have failed,” Brig Gen. Sullivan recalled. “In my opinion, the NSC was not seriously planning for an evacuation,” he said…
On Aug. 9, three days after the first provincial capital fell to the Taliban, Biden’s advisers convened meetings to discuss whether to begin closing the embassy, but senior officials unanimously decided it was still premature, the person said.
Unanimously. That’s a week before the Taliban took Kabul.
The Army takes plenty of shots at the State Department. And while military brass have plenty to answer for, I suspect this is all true.
At the embassy, U.S. troops went room to room on Aug. 15, pressing people to meet deadlines and get ready to go, an Army officer from the 10th Mountain Division told investigators. Some State Department personnel were “intoxicated and cowering in rooms,” and others were “operating like it was day-to-day operations with absolutely no sense of urgency or recognition of the situation,” the officer said.
So business as usual?
Military personnel would have been “much better prepared to conduct a more orderly” evacuation, Navy Rear Adm. Peter Vasely, the top U.S. commander on the ground during the operation, told Army investigators, “if policymakers had paid attention to the indicators of what was happening on the ground.” He did not identify any administration officials by name, but said inattention to the Taliban’s determination to complete a swift and total military takeover undermined commanders’ ability to ready their forces.
Inattention is polite military jargon. The State Department policy from Blinken on down was to deny that the Taliban intended to conquer Afghanistan.
But there have been and will be no consequences.
mortimer says
The ‘spin’ in this case is that they are not differentiating between the terms ‘wind down’ and ‘panicked evacuation’. What occurred was the latter.
The panicked evacuation, that $31-million Beijing Bribed-man insisted on, resulted in the loss of life of both Americans and allies and resulted in a collapse of the Afghan economy and the destruction of institutions that had grown for 20 years.
Afghanistan’s citizens suffer these catastrophic consequence in an unplanned sudden disaster. There must be a precipitous increase in premature deaths due to lack of medicine, hospital staff, malnutrition, vigilantism, abandonment, etc.
It could all have been avoided by very careful planning. And CNN is silent about where the blame lies.
mortimer says
Everyone who disagreed with this catastrophic decision was honor-bound to hand in their resignation if their advice was not heeded on the grounds that they would be unable to work in future to work with a president who did not value advice.
Why work with a boss who disrespects your expertise. They will be blamed for the decision by history. They should have resigned and preserved their honor. They are shamed with the stupidest president in US history.
Phil Copson says
“Everyone who disagreed with this catastrophic decision was honor-bound to hand in their resignation if their advice was not heeded on the grounds that they would be unable to work in future to work with a president who did not value advice.”
———————————————————————–
On the other hand, that is exactly what the Left want: driving conservatives from political office / packing the Supreme Court / purging the officer corps of anyone half-way competent and replacing them with cultural Marxists and all-round dim-wits like Austen and Milley / rooting out those who believe in America and supporting the Constitution from the ranks etc.
Once the good people have gone, they won’t suddenly re-appear in 2024.
gravenimage says
Agreed, Phil–some good people might stay hoping to be able to lessen the damage done by others.
Walter Sieruk says
All this evil in Afghanistan would never have happened if that President Pretender, Joe Biden just threw away and totally destroyed nearly twenty years of progress accomplished by the blood sweat and tears and even the deaths of many Americans as well as those blood, sweat and tears of America’s allies.
Also, Biden threw away more than trillion of the American taxpayer’s money that was invested in for the betterment and development of Afghanistan.
This tragic scenario didn’t actually have to had happen in Afghanistan because the generals of the Pentagon who are strategic military advisers to the President strongly counseled Biden not to have a sharp, sudden withdrawal from Afghanistan but instead have and start a gradual drawback of the US armed forces after September 11, 2021.
The problem was that the arrogant conceited and stupid Joe Biden refused to heed or listen to the wise council of the intellects of the Pentagon. Therefore, is this complete catastrophe with the Taliban total takeover of Afghanistan.
In the ancient but wisdom filled book by Sun Tzu entitled THE ART OF WAR, it is written “He will win who has the military capability and is not interfered with the sovereign.”
That awful incompetent and probably even treasonous villain, Joe Biden, ruined everything.
gravenimage says
Alas, Walter, Afghan Muslims continued to murder Americans and other Infidels working to improve things in Afghanistan, and even the pre-Taliban government had put *stoning* back on the books. Do we *really* want to see Americans die to protect the rape of little boys and stoning of wiomen?
Sadly, it was never possible to civilize Afghanistan, which is statistically 100% Muslim.
Walter Sieruk says
All this evil in Afghanistan would never have happened if that President Pretender, Joe Biden just threw away and totally destroyed nearly twenty years of progress accomplished by the blood sweat and tears and even the deaths of many Americans as well as those blood, sweat and tears of America’s allies.
Also, Biden threw away more than trillion of the American taxpayer’s money that was invested in for the betterment and development of Afghanistan.
This tragic scenario didn’t actually have to had happen in Afghanistan because the generals of the Pentagon who are strategic military advisers to the President strongly counseled Biden not to have a sharp, sudden withdrawal from Afghanistan but instead have and start a gradual drawback of the US armed forces after September 11, 2021.
The problem was that the arrogant conceited and stupid Joe Biden refused to heed or listen to the wise council of the intellects of the Pentagon. Therefore, is this complete catastrophe with the Taliban total takeover of Afghanistan.
In the ancient but wisdom filled book by Sun Tzu entitled THE ART OF WAR, it is written “He will win who has the military capability and is not interfered with the sovereign.”
That awful incompetent and probably even treasonous villain, Joe Biden, ruined everything.
Walter Sieruk says
On the night Television program Sean Hannity 8/17/21 on Fox News, the former United States President Donald Trump was interviewed by Hannity and Mr. Trump had spoken about this Biden withdraw from Afghanistan and Trump, truthfully declared that “Nobody had ever handled a withdrawal worse than Joe Biden.”
He further stated that “This is the greatest embarrassment in the history of this country” and Trump then mentioned how the other countries are watching all this and that “China is laughing at us.” because “China does not respect us anymore.”
It’s all very obvious that this awful lack of respect of all the fault of that terrible man, Joe Biden.
Donald Trump had also well said “What is now happening in Afghanistan is unbelievable”
Walter Sieruk says
By Joe Biden giving victory to the Taliban is very galvanizing Muslim terrorists, including those jihadists of ISIS, because of Biden because of his arrogant conceit refused to heed the wisdom the US generals who advised of him for a planned gradual withdrawal of the Americans military forces from Afghanistan.
Likewise, this this triumph of the Taliban in Afghanistan may, indeed, serve as catalyzed for different Islamic terrorist organizations further strive to fulfill their goal for the violent jihad for the cause of Islam.
So, it’s actually the fault of that President pretender Joe Biden that the increase of the deathly violence of Islamic terrorism in the world because of the awful judgement and terrible folly of Biden concerning Afghanistan that zeal will rise among the jihadists with their Islamic terror entities.
This proves that this bogus president now sitting in the Oval Office of the White House masquerading as a genuine Chief Executive of the USA is a very dangerous and wicked man.
Walter Sieruk says
The US military equipment and arms being obtained by the enemy, the Taliban, is because of that other enemy of America, Joe Biden.
Furthermore, those thieving Taliban are using US military trucks and other American equipment they have stolen for furthering their brutal cruel harsh Islamic oppression of Sharia law on the people of Afghanistan who trapped and force to exist in the land that they have taken over.
This wasn’t what so many American soldiers had died, and many are maimed for life for.
This is worse the sad, terrible tragic. It all comes down to fault of and blame of that death cult of a religion which is Islam.
somehistory says
“But there have been and will be no consequences.”
Oh, but there have been….people died and many were left behind to suffer “consequences”…including rape, torture and death, and many terrorists were brought here to do some of the same things being done there by their fellow terrorists.
The “consequences” have just been to the **wrong** people. But, their time will come…the guilty will “reap.”
Walter Sieruk says
It’s important not to underestimate the stupidity ignorance and incompetence as well treachery of Joe Biden.
gravenimage says
Biden Officials ‘Unanimously’ Decided Afghan Evacuation Was Premature Six Days Before Fall of Kabul
………………..
D’oh!
OLD GUY says
And we PAY these Buffoons how much a year to provide intelligence and to know how to run our government agencies and military. I think we have to many government agencies and advisors on the payroll, who are all bidding to be the most important and valuable bureaucrat’s to secure their positions.
From experience I’ve found the bigger the committee the less you get done and the harder it is to reach a conclusion. Our leaders need good information that is not slanted towards an agencies or persons ideology or personnel benefit. As they say JUST THE FACTS and nothing but THE FACTS allow a good leader the ability to make the right decisions.