Top Items:
Susannah George / Washington Post:
Afghanistan's military collapse: Illicit deals and mass desertions — KABUL — The spectacular collapse of Afghanistan's military that allowed Taliban fighters to reach the gates of Kabul on Sunday despite twenty years of training and billions of dollars in American aid began with a series …
Discussion:
BBC, Fox News, Washington Monthly, Twin Cities, Vox, New York Times, The Intercept and HotAir
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John Podhoretz / Commentary Magazine:
All Biden Had to Do Was...Nothing — All Joe Biden had to do was nothing. Had Joe Biden done nothing, Afghanistan would not have fallen to the Taliban today. Had he just let the status quo continue, the status quo would have continued. Afghanistan would have plodded along and we would have kept …
Discussion:
RedState, Breitbart and Instapundit
David E. Sanger / New York Times:
For Biden, Images of Defeat He Wanted to Avoid — President Biden will go down in history, fairly or unfairly, as the president who presided over a humiliating final act in the American experiment in Afghanistan. — Rarely in modern presidential history have words come back to bite …
Discussion:
Insider, Washington Post, Instapundit, New York Post, Wall Street Journal, Breitbart, The Gateway Pundit, USAFeatures.news and Just The News
Wall Street Journal:
‘Saigon on Steroids’: The Desperate Rush to Flee Afghanistan — Kabul airport descends into chaos as Afghan civilians besiege the terminal and Western countries scramble to evacuate personnel, in a dizzying coda to America's longest war — KABUL—The lucky few were already inside …
Discussion:
CNN, Insider, Bloomberg, Japan Times and globalnews.ca
Ben Smith / New York Times:
Afghans working for U.S. government broadcasters fear Taliban backlash. — More than a hundred journalists employed by the American government's own radio stations remain in Afghanistan as the Taliban take power, U.S. officials and Afghan journalists said Sunday.
Sarah Zheng / South China Morning Post:
China, Russia embassies stay put in Afghanistan as US and allies flee Taliban — Collapse of Afghan government sets off evacuation scramble but Beijing and Moscow have no current plans to remove staff Chinese embassy warns its nationals to stay indoors, take safety precautions and keep …
Jonathan Swan / Axios:
Terrorist threat to U.S. levels up after Taliban rise, Joint Chiefs chair says — Afghanistan has fallen to the Taliban much faster than President Biden or his top military leaders predicted.
Discussion:
Fox News, The Guardian, CNN, The US Sun and Political Wire
Julian Borger / The Guardian:
Taliban's Abdul Ghani Baradar is undisputed victor of a 20-year war — Return to power of movement's co-founder embodies Afghanistan's inability to escape history of conflict — Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban leader freed from a Pakistani jail on the request of the US less than three years ago …
Discussion:
The Daily Caller
United States Department of State:
Joint Statement on Afghanistan — The following is the text of a joint statement on Afghanistan initially released by the following: Albania, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Belgium, Burkina Faso, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark …
Wall Street Journal:
Chaotic Afghanistan Pullout Caps Two Decades of Missteps — Successive U.S. administrations followed strategies that inadvertently fueled support for the insurgency and missed key windows to negotiate — WASHINGTON—In early July, President Biden stood in the East Room of the White House …
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TIME, Associated Press, New York Times and Dallas Morning News
Axios:
1 big thing: Biden's stain — Rarely has an American president's predictions been so wrong, so fast, so convincingly as President Biden on Afghanistan. — Usually military operations and diplomacy are long; the outcomes, foggy. Not here. — Just five weeks ago, President Biden assured Americans …
Robin Wright / New Yorker:
Does the Great Retreat from Afghanistan Mark the End of the American Era?
Does the Great Retreat from Afghanistan Mark the End of the American Era?
Discussion:
New York Post, Twin Cities, New York Times and NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth
Associated Press:
Biden team surprised by rapid Taliban gains in Afghanistan
Biden team surprised by rapid Taliban gains in Afghanistan
Discussion:
Fox News, Washington Examiner, Breitbart, RealClearPolitics, CNN, The Daily Wire, ABC13, claytoonz, Newsbusters and RedState
Michael Lee / Fox News:
Jen Psaki ‘out of the office’ as Biden remains silent on Taliban takeover of Afghanistan
Jen Psaki ‘out of the office’ as Biden remains silent on Taliban takeover of Afghanistan
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, The Gateway Pundit, Twitchy, RedState and The Daily Caller
Jeff Stein / SpyTalk:
Exclusive: U.S. Channel for Emergency Afghan Visas Crashes
Exclusive: U.S. Channel for Emergency Afghan Visas Crashes
Discussion:
Common Sense with Bari Weiss, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post and Just Security
BBC:
Afghanistan conflict: As Kabul falls, Biden backlash grows
Afghanistan conflict: As Kabul falls, Biden backlash grows
Discussion:
New York Times, The US Sun, Al Jazeera and The Daily Beast
Isaac Chotiner / New Yorker:
How America Failed in Afghanistan
How America Failed in Afghanistan
Discussion:
Bloomberg and 19FortyFive
Financial Times:
Low morale, no support and bad politics: why the Afghan army folded
Low morale, no support and bad politics: why the Afghan army folded
Discussion:
Atlantic Council
Lindsay Kornick / Fox News:
Rep. Van Drew calls for Biden's resignation amid Taliban takeover in Afghanistan
Associated Press:
“Game over:” Westerners rush to leave Kabul, rescue Afghans
“Game over:” Westerners rush to leave Kabul, rescue Afghans
Discussion:
Associated Press, The Gateway Pundit and National Review
CNN:
Biden officials admit miscalculation as Afghanistan's national forces and government rapidly fall
Biden officials admit miscalculation as Afghanistan's national forces and government rapidly fall
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, HuffPost, Fox News, The Daily Caller, Twin Cities, Newsbusters, UPI, The National Interest and Bloomberg
Atefa Alizada / The Guardian:
Afghan women's defiance and despair: 'I never thought I'd have to wear a burqa. My identity will be lost'
Afghan women's defiance and despair: 'I never thought I'd have to wear a burqa. My identity will be lost'
Discussion:
Associated Press, Telegraph, Page Array, The Daily Caller and Althouse
The Daily Beast:
Kabul Falls, Afghanistan Burns
Kabul Falls, Afghanistan Burns
Discussion:
France 24, RedState, Bipartisan Report and NPR
Associated Press:
Concerns over US terror threats rising as Taliban hold grows
Concerns over US terror threats rising as Taliban hold grows
Discussion:
Atlantic Council, The Daily Caller, Washington Examiner and TheBlaze
Wall Street Journal:
Intelligence Reports From Afghanistan Missed One Key Element: Speed
Intelligence Reports From Afghanistan Missed One Key Element: Speed
Discussion:
HotAir
Associated Press:
Taliban enter Kabul, await ‘peaceful transfer’ of power
Taliban enter Kabul, await ‘peaceful transfer’ of power
Discussion:
Washington Post, National Review, republicanleader.senate.gov, Boston Herald, The Daily Caller, Breitbart, Al Jazeera, NPR, Townhall, Atlantic Council, National File, CBS News, CBS San Francisco, The Gateway Pundit, Mediaite, TheBlaze, Task & Purpose, Wall Street Journal, Washington Examiner, The Guardian, CNBC, The Hill, The Moderate Voice, Common Dreams, HotAir, Forbes, Slate, Outside the Beltway, Insider and Raw Story
Mark Moore / New York Post:
Milley moves up terror threat to US after Taliban's gains in Afghanistan
Milley moves up terror threat to US after Taliban's gains in Afghanistan
Discussion:
Politico, The Guardian and Associated Press
George Packer / The Atlantic:
Biden's Betrayal of Afghans Will Live in Infamy — There's plenty of blame to go around for the 20-year debacle in Afghanistan—enough to fill a library of books. Perhaps the effort to rebuild the country was doomed from the start. But our abandonment of the Afghans who helped us …
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USA Today, Talking Points Memo, Associated Press and Daily Kos
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U.S. Embassy / U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan:
Security Alert - U. S. Embassy Kabul, Afghanistan — Event: The security situation in Kabul is changing quickly including at the airport. There are reports of the airport taking fire; therefore we are instructing U.S. citizens to shelter in place. — U.S. citizens wanting assistance …
Discussion:
United States Department …, Washington Examiner, New York Post, Bloomberg, New York Times, BBC, Associated Press, NPR, Mediaite, National File, Power Line, Forbes and ABC News
Rebecca Falconer / Axios:
U.S. completes evacuation from American embassy in Kabul
U.S. completes evacuation from American embassy in Kabul
Discussion:
CNN, Twitchy, Bloomberg, Political Wire, HotAir, Mediaite and Washington Post
Krista Torralva / Dallas Morning News:
Texas Supreme Court blocks mask mandates in Dallas, Bexar counties — The entirely Republican court granted a temporary stay at the request of Republican Gov. Greg Abbott and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Sunday. — Two days after a Dallas appeals court dealt Texas Gov. Greg Abbott …
Discussion:
NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth and CBS Dallas / Fort Worth
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Annie Linskey / Washington Post:
From Saigon to Kabul: Biden's response to Vietnam echoes in his views of Afghanistan withdrawal — The Debrief: An occasional series offering a reporter's insights — Two weeks before Saigon fell in April 1975, a 32-year-old Joe Biden was among the senators summoned to the White House …
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Gillian Brockell / Washington Post:
The fall of Saigon: As Taliban seizes Kabul, the Vietnam War's final days remembered
The fall of Saigon: As Taliban seizes Kabul, the Vietnam War's final days remembered
Discussion:
Twitchy, Mediaite and Trending Politics
Tara Palmeri / Politico:
POLITICO Playbook: How the White House wants to spin the fall of Kabul
POLITICO Playbook: How the White House wants to spin the fall of Kabul
Discussion:
Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Trending Politics, Fox News and TheBlaze
Laura Reiley / Washington Post:
Biden administration approves largest increase to food assistance benefits in SNAP program history — Benefits will rise by 25 percent on average, an infusion of cash that advocates say better reflects the modern cost of a basic diet. — The Biden administration has approved the largest increase …
Discussion:
Associated Press and Politico
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Jason DeParle / New York Times:
Biden Administration Prompts Largest Permanent Increase in Food Stamps
Biden Administration Prompts Largest Permanent Increase in Food Stamps
Discussion:
NBC News, The US Sun and Bloomberg
Seth Moulton / U.S. Congressman Seth Moulton:
Moulton Statement on the Situation in Afghanistan — WASHINGTON — Representative Seth Moulton (D-MA) issued the following statement on Afghanistan: — To say that today is anything short of a disaster would be dishonest. Worse, it was avoidable. The time to debate whether we stay …