memeorandum: A conservative cardinal who criticized the vaccine caught covid. Days later, he was put on a ventilator. (Jaclyn Peiser/Washington Post)

2:40 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, The Federalist, Glenn Greenwald, Mediaite, New York Times, Townhall, The Nation, Fox News, The Reactionary, Talking Points Memo, Japan Times, NPR and Poynter

Joseph Choi / The Hill:

US reaches deal with Taliban on evacuations: report — The U.S. has reached a deal with the Taliban to ensure that evacuations from Kabul's airport can take place without interference from the group, according to a report by The Associated Press. — The deal was reached in talks in Doha …

Discussion: HotAir, New York Times, CNN, Boston Herald and Althouse

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, Washington Times, HotAir, Fox News, Task & Purpose, Al Jazeera, The Federalist, Page Array, Trending Politics, The Daily Caller, Associated Press, The Hill and Talking Points Memo

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, IJR, Insider, Instapundit, ABC News and New York Times

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

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, Townhall, New York Post, Talking Points Memo, The Hill, The Guardian, Breitbart, Associated Press, Ace of Spades HQ and Twin Cities

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, USA Today, The Dispatch, TheBlaze and Twitchy

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, HotAir, Breitbart, Vanity Fair, CBS News, Fox News, Reuters, Mediaite, NPR, Bloomberg, Trending Politics, CNN, Mock Paper Scissors, Insider and globalnews.ca

ABC News:
Afghanistan updates: Chaos at Kabul airport, world responds

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

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

Discussion: USA Today, Washington Post, Insider, NBC News, Al Jazeera and The Dispatch

Chris Cillizza / CNN:
Joe Biden is facing a crisis of competence

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, RedState, Breitbart, Raw Story and Twitchy

David E. Sanger / New York Times:
For Biden, Images of Defeat He Wanted to Avoid

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

Discussion: Axios, HotAir, PRESS RUN, Washington Free Beacon, Politico, Persuasion and Quartz

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

Discussion: Twin Cities

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

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

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

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

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, POLITICUSUSA, The Gateway Pundit, Trending Politics, Ace of Spades HQ, HotAir, Townhall, The Federalist, BizPac Review, TheBlaze, Breitbart, RedState, The Daily Caller and IJR

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

Discussion: Washington Post, The Daily Caller, The National Interest and RedState

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

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

Kurt Schlichter / Townhall:
Our Military Is A Woke Joke

Discussion: RealClearPolitics, BizPac Review and HotAir

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

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

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

Washington Post:
International human rights organizations scramble to get local allies out of Afghanistan

Discussion: HotAir, The Diplomat, New York Times and Lawyers, Guns & Money

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

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

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

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

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, The Nation 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: The Daily Beast, Wall Street Journal, The Hill, Washington Examiner, The Week, Breitbart, Raw Story, RedState, The American Independent, Mediaite, Newsbusters, Daily Kos, Bipartisan Report, Trending Politics and The Intellectualist

Adam Shaw / Fox News:
Arizona AG calls on Biden to replace Mayorkas as GOP pressure over border numbers grows

Discussion: National Review

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

Discussion: HotAir, The Daily Caller, Raw Story, Fox News, Washington Examiner, RedState, TheBlaze, Townhall and Florida Politics, more at Mediagazer »

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

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

Discussion: CNBC, HotAir and Insider

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, Slate, Jacobin, IJR, HotAir and Insider

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

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

Associated Press:
The Latest: Merkel says latest Afghan developments ‘awful’

Discussion: Al Jazeera, Associated Press, TheBlaze and Just Security

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, Friendly Atheist, KXAN-TV, Balloon Juice, Raw Story and Mock Paper Scissors

CNN:

Exclusive: Title, cover and details of new Trump book from Bob Woodward and Robert Costa revealed — (CNN)First it was “Fear,” then it was “Rage,” now it is “Peril.” That is the title of the highly-anticipated third book about President Trump from legendary journalist Bob Woodward …

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

Jewish Journal:

A New Israel-Hating Curriculum is Coming to California School Districts … If you've been following the Ethnic Studies controversy in California over the past few years and came away thinking the Jewish community was left relatively unscathed, think again. — The Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum …

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: The Daily Caller and HotAir

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.

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: Politico, The Hill and 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 …

Discussion: globaltimes.cn, U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan, United States Department …, Washington Examiner, New York Post, The Daily Caller, TIME, RedState, New York Times, Associated Press, Power Line, USA Today and NPR

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