Biden and Bush.
(Image credit: Illustrated | Getty Images)

One of the more aggravating features of the U.S. debate over Afghanistan has been the sudden prominence of former officials of the George W. Bush administration. People like Condolezza Rice, Michael Gerson and Peter Wehner, among others, have used their platforms to condemn and criticize President Biden — as though they themselves didn't have a part in persuading the United States to invade Iraq, one of the worst debacles in American foreign policy history. Sometimes it's better just to keep quiet.

Inadvertently, though, they have highlighted an unfortunate truth about the Afghanistan situation. President Biden has made the same mistake getting out of war that Bush did in starting one: Their respective administrations didn't fully prepare themselves — or the public — for the possibility of everything going wrong.

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Joel Mathis, The Week US

Joel Mathis is a freelance writer who has spent nine years as a syndicated columnist, co-writing the RedBlueAmerica column as the liberal half of a point-counterpoint duo. His work also regularly appears in National Geographic, The Kansas City Star and Heatmap News. His awards include best online commentary at the Online News Association and (twice) at the City and Regional Magazine Association.