The FUBAR in Afghanistan is so large in scope and failure, the Pentagon appears to be throwing the White House under the bus; and they are being considerably obtuse while doing it…. or are they?
If these reports from Daily Mail and Wall Street Journal are accurate, the Pentagon is claiming that Joint Chief’s Chairman General Mark Milley and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin warned Joe Biden about the pending collapse of Afghanistan if 2,500 troops were removed. However, both Milley and Austin are on record only a few weeks before the collapse saying exactly the opposite.
(Via Wall Street Journal) – In his Monday speech defending America’s chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan, President Biden said he would not shrink from his share of responsibility.
That would include his decision to bring home U.S. troops, which was made against the recommendations of his top military generals and many diplomats, who warned that a hasty withdrawal would undermine security in Afghanistan, several administration and defense officials said.
The president’s top generals, including Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army Gen. Mark Milley, urged Mr. Biden to keep a force of about 2,500 troops, the size he inherited, while seeking a peace agreement between warring Afghan factions, to help maintain stability. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who previously served as a military commander in the region, said a full withdrawal wouldn’t provide any insurance against instability.
Apparently, the communications goal from the White House team was to create a strawman argument around the decision to withdraw from Afghanistan, and totally avoid the main point of crisis right now being the method and manner of the withdrawal.
At least seven people were killed at the airport, many fell to their deaths as they clung to the outside of U.S. C-17 transport planes. Horrific videos have surfaced showing desperation amid the humanitarian crisis. The AFP is reporting:
The AP is reporting that emergency evacuations have sped up the timeline to avoid the most embarrassing optics for the Biden administration. An additional 1,000 troops from the 82nd Airborne are en-route to support the previously announced 3,000 U.S. troops handling the evacuation. That is a total of 4,000 new military troops sent to Kabul to support the previous 1,000. Keep in mind the original Afghan withdrawal was 2,500 troops in total.
Remember, General Milley did some really odd things as Joint Chiefs Chairman under President Trump: