Top Items:
Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:
A primer on false narratives about Afghanistan — There are many alarmist headlines pronouncing with certitude what has occurred or will occur in Afghanistan. Many are premature — or alternatively, out of date. Others ignore information now available to us that debunks fanciful explanations …
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, HotAir, NPR, Twitchy, New York Post, Breitbart, The Guardian and Yahoo Lifestyle
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New York Times:
The Taliban respond with force to an outpouring of public anger. — Even as the Taliban took their first steps to create a functioning government, they faced the first street protests on Wednesday against their takeover of Afghanistan, with demonstrations in at least two cities.
Discussion:
Reuters, Insider, HotAir, Washington Post, The Guardian, New York Post, Breitbart, Al Jazeera and The Western Journal
CNBC:
Ousted Afghan President Ashraf Ghani resurfaces in UAE after fleeing Kabul, Emirati government says — Ousted Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, who fled his country as its capital Kabul was being overtaken by Taliban fighters, is now in the United Arab Emirates.
Discussion:
mofaic.gov.ae, Washington Examiner, Politico and Insider
Mike Pence / Wall Street Journal:
Biden Broke Our Deal With the Taliban — It's a foreign-policy humiliation unlike anything our country has endured since the Iran hostage crisis. — 'The likelihood there's going to be the Taliban overrunning everything and owning the whole country [of Afghanistan] is highly unlikely," …
Discussion:
HotAir, New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, The Liberal Patriot, NBC News, The Hill, The American Mind, Trending Politics, Politico, claytoonz, Boston.com, The Carpentariat, Israpundit, The Daily Caller, The US Sun, The Bulwark, Althouse, New York Post, Washington Examiner and WEB OF EVIL
Adam Liptak / New York Times:
A First Amendment Precedent — The Supreme Court may reconsider a major case concerning freedom of the press. The Times's Adam Liptak explains why. — Four years ago, at his Supreme Court confirmation hearings, Justice Neil M. Gorsuch indicated that a 1964 precedent protecting press freedom was secure.
Yaroslav Trofimov / Wall Street Journal:
Taliban Block Routes to Kabul Airport, Hampering Evacuations From Afghanistan — Residents in eastern city of Jalalabad stage first protest against Taliban rule — Afghans and Westerners stranded in Kabul after Sunday's Taliban takeover started trickling into the city's U.S.-controlled airport …
Discussion:
HotAir, Human Events, Anadolu Ajansı … and Townhall
Quin Hillyer / Washington Examiner:
After epochal disaster in Afghanistan, Biden should step down — President Joe Biden should resign in disgrace. — Seriously. As I have argued for decades , it is long past time for American politicians to adopt the Asian cultural model of resignations, as a matter of honor, for gross failures or derelictions.
Discussion:
Washington Post, Bipartisan Report, Jacobin, Ground News and Crooks and Liars
David Rohde / New Yorker:
Trying—and Failing—to Save the Family of the Afghan Who Saved Me — Twelve years ago, Tahir Luddin helped us both escape after we were kidnapped by the Taliban. Now I am struggling to get his family out of Kabul. — In the middle of March, I texted my friend Tahir Luddin …
Discussion:
Washington Post, CNN, HotAir, The Dispatch, Common Dreams, Sputnik News, New York Post, NBC News, National Review, Raw Story and IWMF, more at Mediagazer »
Chris Kahn / Reuters:
Biden approval drops to lowest of 7-month presidency after Taliban takeover — President Joe Biden's approval rating dropped by 7 percentage points and hit its lowest level so far as the U.S.-backed Afghan government collapsed over the weekend in an upheaval that sent thousands of civilians …
Greg Sargent / Washington Post:
The hidden way Biden will salvage value from the Afghanistan debacle
Discussion:
Washington Examiner and Washington Times
Jerry Dunleavy / Washington Examiner:
From prison to power: Taliban leaders go from jail, to negotiating table, to Kabul
Discussion:
Vox, Financial Times and The Moderate Voice
Douglas London / Just Security:
CIA's Former Counterterrorism Chief for the Region: Afghanistan, Not An Intelligence Failure — Something Much Worse
Discussion:
HuffPost UK, Washington Post and Foreign Affairs
The Intercept:
The Taliban Have Seized U.S. Military Biometrics Devices
Discussion:
Task & Purpose, Washington Post, The Drive, CNN, Raw Story, Washington Examiner, Insider, New York Post, Politico, National Review and The Daily Caller, more at Techmeme »
Graeme Wood / The Atlantic:
This Is Not the Taliban 2.0 — When the Taliban first sacked Kabul 25 years ago …
Discussion:
Washington Examiner and National Review
Ed Morrissey / HotAir:
Senate Dem: We're gonna get to the bottom of this disgrace in Afghanistan; UPDATE: Pelosi too?
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, CBS San Francisco, The Missouri Times, The Carpentariat and Townhall
Reuters:
Biden's vow to airlift Afghan allies meets ticking clock, risky rescue
Discussion:
Washington Post, Washington Examiner, The Daily Beast, HotAir, New York Times, UnHerd, BBC, CNN, Reuters, CNN, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Reuters, New York Post, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Politico, Breitbart, Washington Post, Portland Mercury, CNN, HuffPost, HotAir, Talking Points Memo, Washington Post, New York Times and Foreign Policy, more at Mediagazer »
Washington Post:
Taliban strikes conciliatory tone, consolidates power as de facto leader returns to country
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, Al Arabiya, NBC News, HotAir, Fox News, RedState, U.S. Department of Defense, Summit News, IJR, The Daily Beast, The Guardian, Axios, New York Times, CNBC, The Daily Caller, Bloomberg, Breitbart, Forbes and Raw Story
Politico:
POLITICO Playbook: Biden's approval rating drops below 50
Discussion:
The American Independent, Fox News, TheBlaze, American Greatness and The Hill
Jeffrey Morris / Covid Data Science:
Israeli data: How can efficacy vs. severe disease be strong when 60% of hospitalized are vaccinated? — A surge involving the rapidly-transmitting Delta variant in heavily vaccinated countries has led to much hand-wringing that the vaccines are not effective against Delta, or vaccine efficacy wanes after 4-6 months.
Discussion:
Calculated Risk, The Guardian, Vanity Fair, Forbes, National Review, NPR and VICE
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Reuters:
U.S. reports more than 1,000 COVID deaths in single day — The United States reported more than 1,000 COVID-19 deaths on Tuesday, equating to around 42 fatalities an hour, according to a Reuters tally, as the Delta variant continues to ravage parts of the country with low vaccination rates.
Discussion:
Washington Post, Bloomberg, The Texas Tribune, New York Times, The Root, CNN, VICE, KXAN-TV, HuffPost, Slate and Balloon Juice
Phil Helsel / NBC News:
Texas school district makes masks part of dress code to get around Gov. Abbott's order … A small Texas school district has made facial coverings part of its dress code, in a bid to get around Gov. Greg Abbott's executive order banning mask mandates. — The board of the Paris Independent …
Discussion:
WFAA-TV, The Texas Tribune, Washington Post, KXII-TV, Bipartisan Report, KXAN-TV, Insider, Raw Story, NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth and The Intellectualist
al.com:
Alabama has net of only 2 ICU beds in state, hospital association says
Discussion:
WSFA-TV, The Hill, Forbes, Washington Post and Chad Prather for Texas
Cameron Jenkins / The Hill:
Arizona governor withholding grants to schools with mask mandates
Discussion:
POLITICUSUSA
Klark Byrd / Paris News:
Paris ISD to require masks as part of dress code
Discussion:
The Guardian, USA Today, NPR, Bloomberg, CBS Dallas / Fort Worth, Unfogged and Political Wire
Kelly Weill / The Daily Beast:
QAnon 'Queen's' Followers Are Sending Insane Anti-Vaxx Notes to Hospitals
HHS News releases:
Joint Statement from HHS Public Health and Medical Experts on COVID-19 Booster Shots — Today, public health and medical experts from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released the following statement on the Administration's plan for COVID-19 booster shots for the American people.
Discussion:
Bloomberg, Forbes, CBS Pittsburgh and The Atlantic
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Erika Edwards / NBC News:
U.S. announces plan to offer boosters to all Americans starting in late September — Top U.S. health officials announced Wednesday that the country has developed a plan to start offering Covid-19 booster shots to all Americans beginning the third week of September, citing evidence that protection …
Discussion:
New York Times, Politico, BuzzFeed News, NBC4 Washington and Political Wire
Sara Boboltz / HuffPost:
White House Recommends COVID-19 Booster Shot 8 Months Post-Vaccination
Discussion:
POLITICUSUSA
- Raheem J. Kassam / The National Pulse:
Stunning Poll Reveals Trump Would Win Election Held Today, As Nearly 1 In 10 Democrats ‘Regret’ Their 2020 Vote. — Stunning new poll numbers from Rasmussen Reports suggest nearly 1 in 10 Democrats regret their vote in the 2020 Presidential election, with 12 percent of ‘Moderates’ saying the same …
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal and Israpundit
Washington Post:
Today's Taliban uses sophisticated social media practices that rarely violate the rules — A movement rooted in traditional moral codes has become expert at wielding the West's advanced communication technologies — For a group that espouses ancient moral codes, the Afghan Taliban …
Discussion:
Financial Times, more at Techmeme »
RELATED:
Rudy Takala / Mediaite:
Twitter Says Taliban Spokesman Will be Allowed to Remain if He Doesn't Get Too Violent
Discussion:
New York Post, TFIPOST, The Daily Caller, Breitbart, CNN, Townhall, New York Post, Page Array, The Wrap and Townhall, more at Techmeme »
New York Times:
The School Culture Wars: ‘You Have Brought Division to Us’ — From mask mandates to critical race theory and gender identity, educators are besieged. “You are just trying to keep everything from collapsing,” one official said. — July and August are supposed to be the quietest months of the school year.
Los Angeles Times:
Cox served with subpoena, Elder blasted for remarks on women at California recall debate — Republicans hoping to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom in the recall election focused their criticism on the Democratic governor and a leading replacement candidate who both declined to join them at a Tuesday debate …
Discussion:
CNN, Fox News, Raw Story, Sacramento Bee, Associated Press, KRON4, HuffPost, Politico and New York Times
Julie Barrett / The Federalist:
How To See If Critical Race Theory Is In Your Kids' School—And Fight It — If your school district is anything like mine, they don't call it critical race theory, and they insist people who use that term are crazy, right-wing conspiracy theorists. We're not.
Discussion:
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