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:
UPI, NPR, Talking Points Memo, The Reactionary, New York Times, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Althouse, Japan Times, Vox, Just An Earth-Bound Misfit, I and New Yorker
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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 Hill, The Guardian, Townhall, Breitbart, Fox News, Associated Press, Wall Street Journal, Twin Cities, CBS News, RedState and Washington Monthly
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:
The Dispatch, UPI and The Daily Caller
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, New York Post and New York Times
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 …
Noah Rothman / MSNBC:
The fall of Afghanistan in 2021 is the result of years of American delusion — On Sunday morning, Taliban fighters captured Afghanistan's Bagram Airfield — the symbol and source of U.S. power projection in the region for 20 years — releasing thousands of prisoners.
Discussion:
The Bulwark, Al Jazeera, Salon, Israpundit and The Dispatch
Ben Kesling / Wall Street Journal:
Taliban Takeover of Afghanistan Brings Complicated Feelings for U.S. Military Veterans — Some vets were ready for the war to be over; others wanted the U.S. to stay. But most agree this was not the ending they wanted — U.S. Army veteran Sean Lee wasn't necessarily surprised …
Discussion:
Politico, New York Times, CNN and PRESS RUN, more at Mediagazer »
Wall Street Journal:
Biden's Afghanistan Surrender
Discussion:
The Hill, Louder With Crowder, Ace of Spades HQ, ABC News, The US Sun, Mediaite and Breitbart
Anatol Lieven / Politico:
Why Afghan Forces So Quickly Laid Down Their Arms
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Atlantic, Lawyers, Guns & Money and The Moderate Voice
Miranda Devine / New York Post:
Joe Biden's defeat will echo for eternity
Discussion:
The Federalist, CNN, Louder With Crowder, BizPac Review, Ace of Spades HQ, IJR and Bloomberg
Jazz Shaw / HotAir:
US pauses flights out of Kabul
Discussion:
CNN, CBS News and Talking Points Memo
Kurt Schlichter / Townhall:
Our Military Is A Woke Joke
Discussion:
BizPac Review, Task & Purpose and The Daily Caller
Richard Haass / Project Syndicate:
America's Withdrawal of Choice
Discussion:
The Nation, New York Times and Talking Points Memo
Bret Stephens / New York Times:
Biden owns the moment. He'll also own the consequences.
Discussion:
USA Today, The Bulwark, Twin Cities, Washington Post, IJR and Just Security
Robin Wright / New Yorker:
Does the Great Retreat from Afghanistan Mark the End of the American Era?
Discussion:
Breitbart, Issues & Insights, The Hill and Twin Cities
Annie Linskey / Washington Post:
From Saigon to Kabul: Biden's response to Vietnam echoes in his views of Afghanistan withdrawal
Discussion:
Politico, Poynter, Townhall, Maggie's Farm and New York Post
New York Times:
Taliban Takeover Could Extinguish U.S. Influence in Kabul
Discussion:
HotAir, Townhall and Washington Post
David Frum / The Atlantic:
The 1 Thing That Could've Changed the War in Afghanistan
Discussion:
Axios, Wall Street Journal, Persuasion, Quartz and Talking Points Memo
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, Reuters, CNN, MSNBC, Bloomberg, Fox News, Washington Examiner, globalnews.ca, BBC and Forbes
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Shannon Pettypiece / NBC News:
White House weighs response as Biden faces mounting criticism over Afghanistan crisis — WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden faced growing criticism from his allies in Washington following the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan as administration officials considered his public response.
Discussion:
RedState, HotAir, Insider, Althouse and BizPac Review
Wall Street Journal:
Three Killed in Kabul Airport as Afghans Scramble to Escape Taliban — Mass evacuations follow the insurgents' capture of Kabul after a rapid sweep of the country — At least three people were killed by gunfire Monday morning in chaotic scenes at the passenger terminal of Kabul's international airport …
Discussion:
NBC News, Politico, Washington Examiner, Gizmodo, Al Jazeera, Fox News, RedState, National Review, Mediaite, Raw Story, WIVB-TV, Power Line, Forbes and Bloomberg
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:
RedState
BBC:
Afghanistan: US takes control of Kabul airport to evacuate staff from country — There have been scenes of panic at Kabul airport as desperate residents try to flee following the seizure of the Afghan capital by the Taliban. — Witnesses say at least three civilians died on Monday …
Discussion:
Reuters, Bloomberg, Insider, Al Jazeera and France 24
Michael Lee / Fox News:
Jen Psaki ‘out of the office’ as Biden remains silent on Taliban takeover of Afghanistan — The timing of Psaki's time off comes as Biden has faced criticism for remaining on vacation
Discussion:
HotAir, Townhall, RedState, BizPac Review, The Daily Caller, The Gateway Pundit, Breitbart, Washington Examiner, Twitchy, NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth, CNN, TheBlaze and National File
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.
Discussion:
Insider and Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »
Associated Press:
The latest on Afghanistan: Four Afghans dead after fall from US plane wheel well
Discussion:
Insider, The Hill, Washington Post, Al Jazeera, Fox News, Associated Press and Snopes.com
Tom Porter / Insider:
The GOP quietly removed a webpage hailing Trump's peace deal with the Taliban as the militant group seized power in Afghanistan
Discussion:
Mediaite, Lincoln Journal Star, HotAir, The Guardian, Raw Story, BizPac Review, Crooks and Liars and Maryland Matters
NBC News:
Biden's rosy statements on Afghanistan, Covid have come back to haunt him
Discussion:
ABC News, BizPac Review and The Dispatch
Martin Amin Rahmani / The Bulwark:
We Didn't Think Our American Friends Would Leave Us in the Dead of Night
Discussion:
Insider, CBS Denver and New York Post
United States Department of State:
Joint Statement from the Department of State and Department of Defense: Update on Afghanistan
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, Washington Examiner, TIME, Mediaite, The Daily Caller, Insider and Associated Press
Sarah Zheng / South China Morning Post:
China, Russia embassies stay put in Afghanistan as US and allies flee Taliban
Discussion:
Al Jazeera, Forbes, Variety, RedState, Associated Press, Fox News, FOX 5 San Diego and Sky News
Associated Press:
Biden team surprised by rapid Taliban gains in Afghanistan
Discussion:
Preston Byrne, U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan, Commentary Magazine, The Federalist, Quartz, Raw Story, Breitbart, New York Post, Fox News, RealClearPolitics, RedState, Florida Politics, Washington Examiner, The Daily Wire, New York Times, FOX 5 San Diego, NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth, NPR, Newsbusters, claytoonz and ABC13
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:
Religion News Service, Friendly Atheist, Balloon Juice, Raw Story and Mock Paper Scissors
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
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:
POLITICUSUSA and Raw Story
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