memeorandum: Afghanistan Is Your Fault — Kabul has fallen. Americans will now exercise … (Tom Nichols/The Atlantic)

1:55 PM ET, August 16, 2021

Top Items:

Craig Whitlock / Washington Post:

Afghan security forces' wholesale collapse was years in the making — In the summer of 2011, Army Lt. Gen. William Caldwell IV made a round of public appearances to boast that he had finally solved a problem that had kept U.S. troops bogged down in Afghanistan for a decade.

Discussion: HotAir, Glenn Greenwald, The Nation, New York Times, The Reactionary, NPR, Talking Points Memo, Japan Times, Poynter, Lawyers, Guns & Money and Althouse

Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:

After Sunday It's Even More Clear Biden Was Right — Americans, or at least the commentating classes, are watching aghast as events unfold in Afghanistan. Some are second-guessing the wisdom of withdrawal - after all, how hard is it to maintain a few thousand soldiers there permanently?

Discussion: HotAir, Bloomberg, Insider, IJR, ABC News and New York Times

Tom Nichols / The Atlantic:

Afghanistan Is Your Fault — Kabul has fallen. Americans will now exercise their usual partisan outrage for a few weeks, and then Afghanistan, like everything else in a nation with an attention span not much longer than a fast-food commercial, will be forgotten.

Discussion: Salon, The Dispatch, Mediaite, The Daily Caller and Twitchy

James Gordon Meek / ABC News:

Afghanistan's collapse: Did US intelligence get it wrong? — American intelligence sources say they correctly predicted the fall of Kabul. — As panicked Afghans watched Taliban fighters roll into the capital city of Kabul Sunday, sealing the collapse of the U.S.-backed government there …

Discussion: The Atlantic, HotAir, Washington Post, RedState, New York Times, The Hill, New York Post, Talking Points Memo, The Guardian, Breitbart, Townhall, Associated Press, Washington Examiner and Twin Cities

ABC News:

Afghanistan updates: Chaos at Kabul airport, world responds — As people rush to leave, leaders contemplate recognizing the Taliban government. — United States troops have taken control of the airport in Kabul, Afghanistan as chaos continues after Afghanistan's president fled the country …

Discussion: TK News, Washington Examiner, Washington Times and CNN

Preston Byrne:

Did America just lose Afghanistan because of WhatsApp? — In the middle of a conflict, good analysis is hard to come by. Because adversaries do not telegraph their plans to one another, plans depend greatly on the fact patterns surrounding their execution, and no human mind can possibly observe …

Discussion: Newsweek, Jihad Watch, Washington Post and IJR

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 …

David Frum / The Atlantic:
The 1 Thing That Could've Changed the War in Afghanistan

Discussion: Axios, HotAir, Persuasion, The Hill, Fox News, New York Times and Quartz

Shay Khatiri / The Bulwark:
Why the Afghan Army Fell to the Taliban

Discussion: The National Interest, Common Sense with Bari Weiss, Melanie Phillips and RedState

Anatol Lieven / Politico:
Why Afghan Forces So Quickly Laid Down Their Arms

Discussion: The Atlantic, Fox News, Washington Free Beacon, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, New Yorker, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, The Bulwark and Commentary Magazine

Kurt Schlichter / Townhall:
Our Military Is A Woke Joke

Discussion: BizPac Review, Talking Points Memo and Ace of Spades HQ

Gerald F. Seib / Wall Street Journal: America's Failures in Afghanistan Were Bipartisan and Long-Running

Amber Phillips / Washington Post:
How Republicans are slamming Biden on Afghanistan

Discussion: Telegraph, Washington Examiner, National Review, Forbes, The American Independent, BizPac Review, The American Spectator, Bipartisan Report and TheBlaze

Noah Rothman / MSNBC:
The fall of Afghanistan in 2021 is the result of years of American delusion

Discussion: Washington Post, Insider, Foreign Policy, Al Jazeera and The Dispatch

Richard Haass / Project Syndicate:
America's Withdrawal of Choice

Discussion: CNBC, HotAir and Insider

Jonathan Weisman / New York Times:
In Washington, Recriminations Over Afghanistan Emerge Quickly

Discussion: RedState, Daily Kos, CNN and ABC13, more at Mediagazer »

Bret Stephens / New York Times:
Biden owns the moment. He'll also own the consequences.

Discussion: NBC News, USA Today, Washington Post, Associated Press, TheBlaze, The Daily Caller, Townhall and Twin Cities

Ben Kesling / Wall Street Journal:
Taliban Takeover of Afghanistan Brings Complicated Feelings for U.S. Military Veterans

Discussion: PRESS RUN, Politico, New York Times and Townhall

Miranda Devine / New York Post:
Joe Biden's defeat will echo for eternity

Discussion: The Hill, The Federalist, Gizmodo, Townhall, RealClearPolitics, HotAir, Ace of Spades HQ, BizPac Review, Louder With Crowder and Bloomberg

Associated Press:

The latest on Afghanistan: Four Afghans dead after fall from US plane wheel well — Here's the latest on the rapidly unfolding events related to Afghanistan: — Report: Afghans who worked for US may temporarily go to bases in Wisconsin and Texas — The U.S. intends to evacuate tens …

Discussion: Washington Post, HotAir, The Diplomat, Fox News, Task & Purpose, Page Array, Al Jazeera, The Federalist, Washington Examiner, The Daily Caller, The Hill and Associated Press

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: The Daily Beast, New York Times, The Guardian, Breitbart, Vanity Fair, CBS News, Fox News, Associated Press, Reuters, Trending Politics, Bloomberg, NPR, CNN, Mock Paper Scissors, Insider and globalnews.ca

Joseph Choi / The Hill:
US reaches deal with Taliban on evacuations: report

Discussion: CNN, New York Times, TheBlaze and Althouse

Shannon Pettypiece / NBC News:
White House weighs response as Biden faces mounting criticism over Afghanistan crisis

Discussion: Washington Examiner, HotAir, RedState, Fox News, Althouse, Insider and NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

CNN:
Biden to return to White House for address on Afghanistan

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, Townhall, The Hill, Washington Times, The Guardian, Althouse and Political Wire

Michael Lee / Fox News:
Jen Psaki ‘out of the office’ as Biden remains silent on Taliban takeover of Afghanistan

Discussion: Washington Free Beacon, ABC News, Washington Examiner, HotAir, POLITICUSUSA, The Gateway Pundit, Trending Politics, Ace of Spades HQ, Townhall, New York Post, The Federalist, BizPac Review, TheBlaze, RedState, Breitbart, The Daily Caller and IJR

BBC:
Afghanistan: US takes control of Kabul airport to evacuate staff from country

Discussion: HotAir, Politico, Reuters, Al Jazeera, France 24, Bloomberg and Insider

Dominick Mastrangelo / The Hill: Ernst ‘afraid of a Benghazi 2.0’ in Afghanistan

Jazz Shaw / HotAir:
US pauses flights out of Kabul

Discussion: CBS News, Washingtonian, Washington Post and Talking Points Memo

Martin Amin Rahmani / The Bulwark:
We Didn't Think Our American Friends Would Leave Us in the Dead of Night

Discussion: HuffPost, Politico, Washington Free Beacon, HotAir, Breitbart, IJR, The Nation and Insider

Ben Smith / New York Times:
Afghans working for U.S. government broadcasters fear Taliban backlash.

Discussion: HotAir, The Daily Beast, RedState, Raw Story, Washington Post, Mediaite, Townhall, Florida Politics, Associated Press and MSNBC, more at Mediagazer »

Wall Street Journal:
Three Killed in Kabul Airport as Afghans Scramble to Escape Taliban

Discussion: New York Times, AIRLIVE, Washington Examiner, NBC News, National Review, Mirror.co.uk, Gizmodo, Trending Politics, The Guardian, Human Events, Al Jazeera, RedState, HotAir, UPI, Fox News, Raw Story, The Daily Caller and Mediaite

Associated Press:
US officials say 7 killed in Kabul airport evacuation chaos

Discussion: Axios, National Review, The Times of Israel, The Daily Caller, globalnews.ca, Breitbart, Associated Press and Fox News

Tom Porter / Insider:
The RNC deleted a webpage hailing Trump's Taliban deal as fighters swept Afghanistan, but says it was part of routine web maintenance

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, The Hill, Washington Examiner, HotAir, Breitbart, RedState, Mediaite, Newsbusters, Daily Kos, Trending Politics, Raw Story, Bipartisan Report and The Intellectualist

Sarah Zheng / South China Morning Post:
China, Russia embassies stay put in Afghanistan as US and allies flee Taliban

Discussion: Fox News, Tangle, Washington Examiner, Al Jazeera, Breitbart, Louder With Crowder, Forbes, Quartz, National Review, Variety, IJR, NBC4 Washington, Associated Press, RedState and Vox

Nicholas Fondacaro / Newsbusters:
NBC Whines GOP ‘Seized’ on ‘Optical Comparison’ Between Kabul/Saigon Airlifts

Discussion: HotAir

Jaclyn Peiser / Washington Post:

A conservative cardinal who criticized the vaccine caught covid. Days later, he was put on a ventilator. — Most days during the coronavirus pandemic, Cardinal Raymond L. Burke could be found strolling down the streets of Rome maskless and carrying rosary beads.

Discussion: New York Post, Religion News Service, Crooks and Liars, KXAN-TV, Friendly Atheist, Balloon Juice, Raw Story and Mock Paper Scissors

Meridith McGraw / Politico:

The GOP waves white flag in the same-sex marriage wars — To mark the beginning of Pride Month this year, Republican National Committee chair Ronna McDaniel did what party leaders do on these types of occasions: She sent out a tweet. — “Happy #PrideMonth!” she wrote, " …

Discussion: Raw Story, POLITICUSUSA and Mock Paper Scissors

Melissa Nann Burke / Detroit News:

Ex-Rep. Paul Mitchell dies. He quit GOP over its refusal to accept Trump's defeat — Former U.S. Rep. Paul Mitchell, a conservative who quit the Republican Party over its allegiance to President Donald Trump after the 2020 election, has died after a diagnosis of stage IV renal cancer. He was 64.

Discussion: The Hill and The Daily Caller

Associated Press:

Detainee says China has secret jail in Dubai, holds Uyghurs — A young Chinese woman says she was held for eight days at a Chinese-run secret detention facility in Dubai along with at least two Uyghurs, in what may be the first evidence that China is operating a so-called “black site” beyond its borders.

Discussion: HotAir and The Daily Caller

John Nichols / The Nation:

Ron Johnson Does the Bidding of the Ultra-Rich — A new study reveals that Johnson's “principled” stand for tax reform may enrich two of his campaign donors by half a billion dollars. — Ron Johnson's public image is that of a delusional conspiracy theorist who struggles to pull together coherent sentences.

Dave Orrick / Twin Cities:

Ugly drama inside MN GOP threatens chairwoman's job — Indictment of donor sparked fire — Following what amounted to a weekend political firestorm, the Minnesota Republican party Sunday evening found itself navigating treacherous waters of possible scandal that threatened to oust the state party's leader.

Discussion: Fox News and Law & Crime

Donald J. Trump:

Statement by Donald J. Trump, 45th President of the United States of America — Joe Biden gets it wrong every time on foreign policy, and many other issues. Everyone knew he couldn't handle the pressure. Even Obama's Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates, said as much.

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 …