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Biden officials: Trump left bare cupboard on Afghanistan — Senior national security officials presiding over a historic foreign policy collapse are privately expressing deep frustrations about the thin Afghanistan withdrawal plans left behind by Donald Trump.
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Taliban announce ‘amnesty,’ urge women to join government — KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The Taliban declared an “amnesty” across Afghanistan and urged women to join their government Tuesday, seeking to convince a wary population that they have changed a day after deadly chaos gripped …

Pelosi loses patience with centrists on infrastructure deal — With Heather Caygle and Sarah Ferris. — ‘AMATEUR HOUR’ — As the world watches the fallout from Afghanistan, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and her leadership team are busy planning for the House's return next week.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Fox News, Democrats, Common Dreams, Balloon Juice and NBC News

Remarks by President Biden on Afghanistan — THE PRESIDENT: Good afternoon. I want to speak today to the unfolding situation in Afghanistan: the developments that have taken place in the last week and the steps we're taking to address the rapidly evolving events.
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Washington Post, Washington Examiner, The Bulwark, The Hill, Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, All Arab News, The Week, New York Times, The Western Journal, spectatorworld.com, Washington Examiner, Washington Post, Daily Kos, Washingtonian, Bloomberg, Forbes, Breitbart, The Boston Globe, The Daily Beast, Washington Examiner, Front Page Magazine, Townhall, Japan Times, USA Today, Dana Loesch's Chapter …, globalnews.ca, Scripting News, Politico and Informed Comment


Biden administration embroiled in internal blame-shifting amid Afghanistan chaos — Washington (CNN)Factions within the Biden administration are embroiled in a blame game over why the US government didn't act sooner to withdraw American citizens and Afghans who helped the US over two decades of war …
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HotAir, TheBlaze, Breitbart, Washington Examiner, Crooks and Liars, The Western Journal, Twitchy and Slate


Biden to Afghanistan: Drop Dead — Biden is defiant in blaming others for his Afghan debacle. — By The Editorial Board — President Biden told the world on Monday that he doesn't regret his decision to withdraw rapidly from Afghanistan, or even the chaotic, incompetent way the withdrawal has been executed.
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American Greatness, Washington Examiner, Tangle, HotAir, Associated Press, National Review, Washington Post, Human Events, Washington Post, The Nation and ABC News


Taliban accumulate massive amounts of U.S.-supplied firepower — The Taliban accumulated an enormous amount of U.S.-supplied guns, ammunition, helicopters, combat aircraft and more after Afghan security forces collapsed this weekend, AP reports. — Why it matters: The U.S. spent billions …
Discussion:
National File and Twitchy


Female mayor in Afghanistan says she's waiting for Taliban to ‘come ... and kill me’
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New York Times, Quartz, Task & Purpose, The Western Journal, inews.co.uk and Mother Jones

Biden's promise to restore competence to the presidency is undercut by chaos in Afghanistan

Last images from the Afghan war capture a 20-year failure to acknowledge how badly the conflict was going
Discussion:
emptywheel and Reuters

Get Afghan Refugees Out. Then Let Them In. — There are no good ways to lose a war …
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The White House, Raw Story, The Atlantic, Mother Jones, Crooks and Liars, Common Dreams and Althouse

Biden must rescue thousands of U.S. citizens trapped in Afghanistan
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Wall Street Journal, HotAir, The Federalist, Quartz, Vox, New York Post, The Western Journal, The Drive, The Daily Beast, USA Today, Twitchy, Ohio Capital Journal, Breitbart, Army Times, The Hill, Forbes, National Review, The American Spectator, Twin Cities, Politico, Associated Press, globalnews.ca and TheBlaze

Statement by President and Mrs. Bush on Afghanistan
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Talking Points Memo, HuffPost, CBS News, The Hill, USA Today, The Western Journal, Human Events, National Review, The Daily Caller, Mediaite, KVEO-TV, Townhall, HotAir, IJR, Washington Examiner, Politico, Fox News and Insider

POLITICO Playbook: Biden's big bet on Afghanistan
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Talking Points Memo, The Western Journal, Democrats, Associated Press and Raw Story

A Taliban official's TV interview with a female presenter is part of a broader campaign.
Discussion:
Slate

The sausage making ain't gonna be pretty the next few months
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CNN, Raw Story, The Lens, One America News Network and Roll Call

They aided the U.S. military in Afghanistan for years. Have we left them to die?
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Washington Post, The Daily Beast, Politico, New York Times and Mashable

Taliban vow to honor women's rights but within Islamic law
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Associated Press, ABC13, abc7NY and The Daily Caller

Biden gave the best possible defense of his Afghanistan withdrawal
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Esquire, HotAir, Atlantic Council, The Western Journal and Boston Herald

Eerie tension settles over Kabul as Taliban patrols the streets and U.S. reasserts control at the airport following chaotic scenes
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RedState, HotAir, New York Post, Daily Kos, HuffPost, CBS News, Bloomberg, Washington Examiner, BizPac Review and The US Sun

72 hours at Camp David: Inside Biden's lagging response to the fall of Afghanistan
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The Western Journal, Twitchy, RedState, Newsweek and spectatorworld.com

Afghan turmoil ‘shames’ the West, says German president
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HotAir, Fox News, CNBC, Politico, Al Jazeera, Associated Press and Politico

Inside Reach 871, A US C-17 Packed With 640 Afghans Trying to Escape the Taliban
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Washington Examiner, HotAir, WNCT-TV, Summit News, NPR, HuffPost UK, FOX 5 San Diego, Washington Post, Newsweek, New York Post, United States Department …, The Drive, Politico, globalnews.ca, NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth, Fox News, The US Sun, Associated Press, The Wrap, Power Line, RedState, Committee to Protect …, NPR, Rev, Twitchy, The Daily Beast, Raw Story, MSN, POLITICUSUSA, wabe.org, NBC 6 South Florida, U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan, Denver Post and Twin Cities, more at Mediagazer »

Disbelief and betrayal: Europe reacts to Biden's Afghanistan ‘miscalculation’
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Washington Examiner, HotAir, Financial Times, Politico, The Times and Wall Street Journal

Beltway reporting of Afghanistan withdrawal a disservice to Americans
Discussion:
The Atlantic, Esquire and The Western Journal

Taliban Conquest of Afghanistan Scrambles the Diplomatic Map
Discussion:
HotAir, Japan Times, Hong Kong Free Press HKFP and Tennessee Star

Group Statement Sent to President Biden on Behalf of The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post
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Vanity Fair, Poynter, Fox News, PRESS RUN, Althouse, Breitbart, Insider, Washington Post, CNBC, The Guardian, Associated Press and CNN


U.S. to Advise Boosters for Most Americans 8 Months After Vaccination — Nursing home residents and health care workers will most likely be the first to get booster shots, as soon as September, followed by other older people who were vaccinated last winter.
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HotAir, Washington Post, Gizmodo, NBC Chicago, Human Events, FiercePharma, Digby's Hullabaloo, Mediaite, UPI, Politico, Associated Press, New York Post, Wall Street Journal, Breitbart, Townhall, Balloon Juice, Daily Kos, The Daily Caller, Raw Story, Insider, CNN, New York Times, Forbes, Crooks and Liars, The Colorado Sun, The Gateway Pundit, NBC 6 South Florida, NPR and National Review


Instagram Posts Seal Fate Of Trump-Loving Bodybuilder Who Dragged Capitol Cop — The FBI has arrested Logan Barnhart, whom online sleuths dubbed “CatSweat,” with the help of the Sedition Hunters community. — When former President Donald Trump sent a tweet early this year promoting Jan. 6 as a …
Discussion:
HuffPost UK, Bipartisan Report and Raw Story
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Sen. Andre Jacque of De Pere hospitalized after testing positive for COVID-19 — MADISON - One of the Legislature's most active lawmakers who has opposed mask and vaccine mandates has received hospital care after testing positive for COVID-19. — Sen. Andre Jacque, a Republican from De Pere …
Discussion:
Raw Story


As Taliban takes over, some swap iconic AK-47s for made-in-America rifles — The Russian Kalashnikov AK-47 and its derivatives have long been the assault rifle of choice for militant groups because of their rugged design, but some Taliban fighters are trading them in for captured U.S. guns as Afghanistan's government collapses.
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No Decent Interval — With the Taliban now moving into Kabul, the collapse of the U.S.-supported government there has been unbelievably swift. I have any number of Afghan former students and graduates of our programs at Stanford who have been desperately seeking to get out.


Bad News — In the beginning, there were ABC, NBC, and CBS, and they were good. Midcentury American man could come home after eight hours of work and turn on his television and know where he stood in relation to his wife, and his children, and his neighbors, and his town, and his country, and his world.


As Delta Surges, Covid-19 Breakthrough Cases Remain Uncommon — WSJ analysis finds higher risk of infection from strain, but research shows that vaccines still protect against most serious illness — The Delta variant of the Covid-19 virus appears to be breaking through the protection vaccines provide …
Discussion:
Political Wire


He Taught a Ta-Nehisi Coates Essay. Then He Was Fired. — The first time Matt Hawn suspected that he might run into trouble for what he was teaching was last August. His contemporary-issues class was discussing the events in Kenosha, Wisconsin, where protesters had taken to the streets …
Discussion:
WJHL


CNN's Poppy Harlow Will Take Hiatus to Pursue Legal Studies (EXCLUSIVE) … CNN mid-morning anchor Poppy Harlow is going to take a hiatus from working on her program to tend to a legal matter: studying the law at Yale University. — Harlow, who has been with CNN since 2008 …
Discussion:
The Hill


Mike Lee holds commanding lead over GOP challengers in new Utah poll — Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) is running well ahead of his GOP primary challengers in the Utah Senate race, according to a new poll out Tuesday. — The survey, commissioned by the Republican-leaning firm September Group …
Discussion:
Political Wire