memeorandum: EXCLUSIVE: Small Percentage Of Afghan Refugees Flagged Through Security Screenings For Possible Ties To Terrorism (Shelby Talcott/The Daily Caller)

12:20 PM ET, August 23, 2021

Top Items:

Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:

Why so many people find Biden an easy target — The vehemence with which many politicians and media pundits on the left and right have attacked President Biden should not be surprising. Given the chaotic and heart-wrenching scenes in Afghanistan, the commander in chief becomes an obvious target …

Discussion: Washington Examiner, Telegraph, Telegraph, Sky News, HotAir, Washington Post, CNBC, Althouse, Washington Post, NBC News, Digby's Hullabaloo, Slate, Townhall and Reuters

Alissa J. Rubin / New York Times:

Did the War in Afghanistan Have to Happen? — In 2001, when the Taliban were weak and ready to surrender, the U.S. passed on a deal. Nearly 20 years later, the Taliban hold all the cards. — Taliban fighters brandished Kalashnikovs and shook their fists in the air after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks …

Discussion: Washington Post, Al Jazeera, Human Events, The Carpentariat, Foreign Policy, Daily Kos, Reuters, New York Post and Raw Story

Sally Lockwood / Sky News:

Afghanistan: Taliban warns there will be ‘consequences’ if Biden delays withdrawal of US troops — The Taliban meets Sky News in Doha to discuss what happens next - and issues a stark warning about the withdrawal of troops from the country. — Created with Sketch.

Discussion: HotAir, Associated Press, RedState, Reuters, Human Events, BizPac Review, New York Post, Yahoo News, Breitbart, The Daily Caller, Mediaite, USA Today, The Guardian, Bloomberg, Fox News, Washington Post, NBC News and CBS News

Axios:

Biden doesn't plan to fire anyone over Kabul chaos, sources say — Biden isn't inclined to fire any senior national security officials over the chaos in Kabul unless the situation drastically deteriorates.

Discussion: HotAir, Breitbart, Washington Post, Washington Post, Deadline, The Dispatch, TheBlaze, New Yorker, CNN, Washington Post, The Spectator World, Financial Times and U.S. Department of Defense

Meagan Flynn / Washington Post:

Hundreds of Afghans arrive at Northern Virginia Community College, greeted by outpouring of support — They kept coming: people carrying bags of clothes, bags of toiletries, bags of diapers and baby formula and toys and books. — All were donations for the hundreds of Afghan refugees …

Discussion: New York Magazine, HotAir, Financial Times, Insider, The Daily Caller, RedState, Townhall, UPI, Mother Jones, Instapundit and The Drive

John Harwood / CNN:
Why Biden's Afghanistan exit wasn't about good politics

Discussion: Washington Post, Balloon Juice, Politico, NPR, Common Dreams, The Global Warming … and Trending Politics

CNN:
Taliban issue death sentence for brother of Afghan translator who helped US troops, according to letters obtained by CNN

Discussion: Washington Examiner, HotAir, The Daily Caller, POLITICUSUSA, New York Post, BizPac Review, Mediaite and Power Line

Washington Post:
Taliban rejects extending Aug. 31 U.S. pullout, calling it a ‘red line’

Discussion: CBS News, CNN, Just Security and Associated Press

Politico:
Deadlines burn Biden

Discussion: HotAir, RedState, Breitbart and Trending Politics

Washington Examiner:
Democrats trust the Taliban more than their fellow Americans

Discussion: NBC News, Washington Post, RedState and Insider

Jack Newman / Daily Mail: ‘There will be consequences’: Taliban warn US and Britain to get out, saying August 31 withdrawal deadline is a ‘red line’ …

Washington Post:
Biden says safe zone around Kabul airport to expand, as Pentagon enlists commercial airlines to aid evacuations

Discussion: HotAir, CNN, Human Events, Insider, HuffPost, Washington Examiner, New York Post, NBC News, Financial Times, Gizmodo, Al Jazeera, Reuters, New York Times, 6abc, Wall Street Journal, Politico, Fox News, Washington Times and NPR

Wall Street Journal:
Fire Fight Erupts at Kabul Airport as Security Situation Deteriorates

Discussion: Kevin Drum, HotAir, Associated Press, Human Events, New York Times, CBS News, Breitbart, NBC4 Washington and Trending Politics

Washington Post:
At least 21 dead, 20 missing after ‘catastrophic’ flooding in central Tennessee, officials say

Discussion: NPR, Talking Points Memo, Associated Press, The Daily Beast, CNN, WKRN-TV and The Hill

Liv Klingert / Politico: Taliban threaten consequences if US delays Afghanistan exit

US Food and Drug Administration:

FDA Approves First COVID-19 Vaccine — Approval Signifies Key Achievement for Public Health — For Immediate Release: — Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the first COVID-19 vaccine. The vaccine has been known as the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine …

Discussion: The Daily Beast, Bloomberg, CBS News, Washington Examiner, ArkansasTimes, Gizmodo, TechCrunch, Defense One, Townhall, Daily Kos, The Verge, The Guardian, KOIN-TV, Mediaite, Twitchy, Forbes, FOX31 Denver and Fox News

Washington Post:

Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine wins full FDA approval, potentially persuading the hesitant to get a shot — The licensing is a landmark event that could have major effects, experts said. — Federal regulators Monday granted full approval to the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine …

Discussion: ABC News, Politico, New York Post, RedState, Common Dreams, TheBlaze, Hackwhackers, BizPac Review and Forbes

New York Times:

The F.D.A. grants full approval to the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine. — The Food and Drug Administration on Monday granted full approval to Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine for people 16 and up, making it the first to move beyond emergency use status in the United States.

Discussion: USA Today, Breitbart, Raw Story and NPR

NBC News:

FDA grants full approval to Pfizer's Covid vaccine — The Food and Drug Administration granted full approval to Pfizer-BioNTech's two-dose vaccine Monday for people ages 16 and up, making it the first Covid-19 vaccine to pass this final regulatory hurdle. — “The FDA's approval of this vaccine …

Discussion: CNN, Roll Call, IJR, UPI and Just The News

Washington Post:

Third Pfizer dose significantly lowers risk of infection in seniors, Israeli data shows … PLEASE NOTE — The Washington Post is providing this important information about the coronavirus for free. For more free coverage of the coronavirus pandemic, sign up for our Coronavirus Updates newsletter where all stories are free to read.

Discussion: Mercury News, Wall Street Journal, Breitbart, Homeless on the High Desert, ACA Signups, The Hill, Washington Post and Washington Examiner

Politico:
States gripped by Delta variant face case surge with fewer health workers

Discussion: Raw Story, NBC News and Wall Street Journal

Associated Press:
US regulators give full approval to Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine

Discussion: CBS San Francisco and ABC7

Berkeley Lovelace Jr / CNBC:
FDA grants full approval to Pfizer-BioNTech's Covid shot, clearing path to more vaccine mandates

Discussion: HotAir, NBC Chicago, Trending Politics, STAT and POLITICUSUSA

New York Times:
Pfizer-BioNTech Vaccine Given Full F.D.A. Approval, Paving the Way for Mandates

Discussion: CNN, Metro.co.uk, NBC Chicago, Raw Story, Talking Points Memo, New York Post, Kevin Drum and Political Wire

Brendan J. Lyons / Albany Times Union:

Cuomo's dog Captain left at mansion after governor departed — ALBANY — Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, who has been staying with one of his sisters in Westchester County in the final days of his third term, recently has asked staff members at the Executive Mansion if anyone would like to keep his dog …

Discussion: Fox News, Washington Post, Insider, Wall Street Journal, RedState, New York Post, Gawker, Twitchy, National Review, Mediaite and Political Wire

Burgess Everett / Politico:

Sinema: I simply won't back a $3.5T spending bill — Kyrsten Sinema still opposes her party's plans for a $3.5 trillion, party-line spending bill. And she's not up for a negotiation about it. — As House Democratic leaders hold back Sinema's own Senate-passed bipartisan infrastructure bill …

Discussion: The Hill and Insider

Washington Post:

Let's take the win. Let's do infrastructure first. — The authors are Democratic members of the House of Representatives from Georgia, Hawaii, California, Texas, Maine, New Jersey and Oregon. — Time kills deals. This is an old business saying and the essence of why we are pushing …

Discussion: New Jersey Online, Washington Examiner, Fox News, CBS News, HotAir, The Hill, Politico, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Wall Street Journal, Daily Kos, The Daily Caller, Common Dreams, Fox Business and Breitbart

Russell Berman / The Atlantic:
The Man in Joe Biden's Way

Discussion: Politico, Insider, New York Times, One America News Network, UPI, The Hill, Bloomberg and NBC News

Thomas Franck / CNBC:
Wall Street calls moderates' bluff, urges investors to prepare for infrastructure and budget reconciliation bills

Discussion: The Daily Caller

Olivia Beavers / Politico:
McCarthy faces speakership test on infrastructure vote

Discussion: Raw Story, Maryland Matters and New York Times

Bill Scher / Real Clear Politics:
Moderate Dems Have Upper Hand. Will They Stick or Fold?

Discussion: Roll Call, The Editorial Board, CNN, Florida Politics and The Hill

Lucas Kunce / Kansas City Star:

Here are two sentences of truth about the US and Afghanistan | The Kansas City Star — What we are seeing in Afghanistan right now shouldn't shock you. It only seems that way because our institutions are steeped in systematic dishonesty. It doesn't require a dissertation to explain what you're seeing.

Eliza Shapiro / New York Times:

N.Y.C. Will Mandate Vaccines for Teachers and School Staff — New York City will require every Department of Education employee — including teachers, principals, custodians and all central office staff — to have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine by Sept. 27 …

Discussion: Associated Press, Metro.co.uk, Forbes and POLITICUSUSA

CNN:

Afghan visa applicants told to stay away from Kabul airport as US races to meet exit deadline — Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN)Afghans who have applied for special immigrant visas to the US were told to stay away from Kabul's airport on Monday, as American officials ramped up evacuation flights …

Discussion: New York Post, The Daily Caller, The Western Journal, National Review, Associated Press and U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan

Will Carless / USA Today:

Armed protests are picking up, and a new study says they're more likely to turn violent — Corrections/clarifications: This story originally mischaracterized the uptick in armed protests. The number of armed protests increased from February to June; the proportion doubled.