Do you think Biden made the right call in Afghanistan? And if not, what should he have done?
- Thread starter acri1
- Start date
dora_da_destroyer
Master Baker
who can’t do a jumping jack? Someone posted another video with a dude wearing his helmet backwards and a crew in the cut smoking hash...thing is, it doesn’t take 20 years to figure out these people ain’t ready/don’t give a fukk/don’t get it. We should’ve left them on their own right after bin laden was killed
AquaCityBoy
Veteran
Is she wrong or wrong?
In before Napoleon goes Chicken Little about how the right is going to attack her and how this will hurt Dems' chances in 2024.
There wasn't a right call to make in this situation. Ideally the U.S. should have been out of Afghanistan years ago, we're talking the first term of the Obama presidency. At the very least taking the laying the groundwork for getting out of there by the second term. Here we are two decades later watching Saigon 2: Electric Boogaloo.
Comparing this to Vietnam doesn't make sense to me. This wasn't some mass casualty event for American Troops.
Isaiah Bradley
Banned
The current military is depending on the Taliban to "allow safe" passage for both their citizens, those authorized to leave cause they helped the West, and US citizens...but "Biden did the right thing" is the most popular answer? 
Shouldn't have left is clearly the obvious unbiased answer
Shouldn't have left is clearly the obvious unbiased answer
storyteller
Veteran
It was the right call. First thing of note is that Trump had already set-up the agreement to leave and started pulling troops. So the ball was already rolling. The second which has been mentioned repeatedly throughout the thread is that after 20 years...this was still the inevitable result because they went in without a firm exit-plan or even specific measurable goals that could lead to any real progress. It feels like damn near from "go" there was no solid plan that would help the people be independent (just a shift to dependence on American military and contractors). Then three administrations straight fell victim to the sunken cost fallacy; I speculate mainly just to try to save face. So that gets you to Biden, 20 years later, with no visible progress outside of some expensive invoices and an agreement to leave that he didn't set up.
I have zero doubts that Trump administration incompetence left the exit well behind the 8-ball. I'd bet Biden's advisors had to scramble to try and organize this, and I'm curious how many mistakes rest in rushed decisions to keep American troops safe at the cost of a mess left behind for the Afghan people. I'm skeptical of the competence of our foreign policy advisors in all cases, but I'll stay agnostic on how much blame for the mess lies straight-up on Biden...except for one thing...
Biden had more than enough time to plan a more robust and effective refugee strategy. Everyone could see this thing falling apart fast (although maybe not this insanely fast). The Biden administration should have been working with allies and setting up plans to get Afghan refugees to safety either here or abroad (and yes, obviously they were doing some of this work but clearly there was a lot more work to be done in advance). Biden's been disappointing on immigration and completely failed to turn around the conversations on asylum seekers and refugees. This continues that trend in my eyes. Way too many Americans are being taught to fear refugees from Afghanistan via right-wing channels, while the MSNBC's and CNN's of the world focus solely on the military loss and Biden seems content to blame the Afghans for their helpless situation.
So leaving was the right decision, especially after Trump already set things in motion. How much of the incompetence of this falls on Biden's team is hard to say because of the circumstances, so I'll wait until it's looked into more deeply for what strategies and assumptions were made heading in. But the Biden Administration is failing its Afghan allies in terms of the refugee situation and that one feels avoidable.
I have zero doubts that Trump administration incompetence left the exit well behind the 8-ball. I'd bet Biden's advisors had to scramble to try and organize this, and I'm curious how many mistakes rest in rushed decisions to keep American troops safe at the cost of a mess left behind for the Afghan people. I'm skeptical of the competence of our foreign policy advisors in all cases, but I'll stay agnostic on how much blame for the mess lies straight-up on Biden...except for one thing...
Biden had more than enough time to plan a more robust and effective refugee strategy. Everyone could see this thing falling apart fast (although maybe not this insanely fast). The Biden administration should have been working with allies and setting up plans to get Afghan refugees to safety either here or abroad (and yes, obviously they were doing some of this work but clearly there was a lot more work to be done in advance). Biden's been disappointing on immigration and completely failed to turn around the conversations on asylum seekers and refugees. This continues that trend in my eyes. Way too many Americans are being taught to fear refugees from Afghanistan via right-wing channels, while the MSNBC's and CNN's of the world focus solely on the military loss and Biden seems content to blame the Afghans for their helpless situation.
So leaving was the right decision, especially after Trump already set things in motion. How much of the incompetence of this falls on Biden's team is hard to say because of the circumstances, so I'll wait until it's looked into more deeply for what strategies and assumptions were made heading in. But the Biden Administration is failing its Afghan allies in terms of the refugee situation and that one feels avoidable.
No oil, no stayThe current military is depending on the Taliban to "allow safe" passage for both their citizens, those authorized to leave cause they helped the West, and US citizens...but "Biden did the right thing" is the most popular answer?
Shouldn't have left is clearly the obvious unbiased answer
Kingcobrakai
Pro
People forget about the stalling by the Trump Administration during the transition. How Cabinet level members quit. How Trump loyalists defied requests. How those who wanted a clean transition were frozen out. How Republicans slowed down the confirmation process.
You can see it in certain places where it hurts this administration, and I definitely realize it hurt here.
The taliban isn't Al qaeda. You realize both Biden and Trump administrations sat down and talked to them like leaders of an actual country? The taliban just want to be left alone. They aren't carrying out international terror attacks to start a global caliphate. You pay them money they don't fukk with you. If you fight them, they fight back. But despite the propaganda they are rational actors when it comes to their dealings with the United States.The current military is depending on the Taliban to "allow safe" passage for both their citizens, those authorized to leave cause they helped the West, and US citizens...but "Biden did the right thing" is the most popular answer?
Shouldn't have left is clearly the obvious unbiased answer
So, they are more than likely telling the truth that they won't fukk with the US during their withdrawal. Plus they know if they do, the US will be dropping bombs again.
Glad they are getting out.
Also, this has been going on for 20 years, lame to try to pin it on one president.
Also, this has been going on for 20 years, lame to try to pin it on one president.
With a dozen tweets to back him upIn before Napoleon goes Chicken Little about how the right is going to attack her and how this will hurt Dems' chances in 2024.
Ozymandeas
Veteran
Right call, bad execution. It’s not wrong to point that out. You got people talking about some translators are stuck in the countryside and can’t get to Kabul to get out so they might be left to their fate. If you knew that, why rush the departure? Why weren’t you focused on getting them out before? I get Trump left you with a quickened timeline and if you extended it, you risk the Taliban wanting to fight and some American soldiers getting killed but you had from February ‘21 to September ‘21 to move these people out. I get Biden was overwhelmed but what the fukk was Austin, Blinken and Milley doing?
Ozymandeas
Veteran
That too.
