Washington, D.C. – After an utterly disastrous and embarrassing withdrawal from Afghanistan that has left over 100 Americans stranded in the Taliban-controlled country, Democrats are scrambling to change the subject.
Internally at the White House, the blame game is in full swing. According to Politico: “…it’s not a surprise that things have gotten a bit chippy between the White House, the State Department, and the Pentagon as the administration faces its first foreign policy crisis. All sides have been engaging in subtle and not-so subtle finger pointing.”
President Biden’s longtime feud with our military leaders is well noted. But now, it looks like that distrust has led to a truly bad outcome with Americans stranded behind enemy lines. This morning on CNBC, Retired General Mark Kimmitt said, “I don’t think it’ll be diplomacy. I think it’ll be hostage negotiations…[The Taliban] have a lot of wants, and what they have are American hostages.”
In the U.S. Senate, some vulnerable Democrats – like Senators Mark Kelly, Catherine Cortez Masto, and Maggie Hassan – have come up with the same tactic to address the crisis: Express concern but avoid mentioning the Commander-in-Chief, Joe Biden, by name. Others, such as Senators Raphael Warnock and Michael Bennet, have tried to avoid all talk of the decisions made in Afghanistan.
When will the Democrats of the U.S. Senate live up to their duty as major role players in foreign policy and hold the Biden Administration accountable for the quagmire in Afghanistan, the burgeoning new terrorist safe haven, and the over 100 American stranded behind enemy lines?
###