Biden better be ready for the political blowback from the coming chaos in Kabul
With U.S. forces set to be fully withdrawn from Afghanistan by the end of the month, President Biden better be preparing for the political blowback from presiding over the ugliest American military defeat since the Vietnam War drew to an ignominious close.
The parallel goes far beyond what seemed probable just a couple of months ago, when it looked like withdrawal would produce an intensification of the ongoing civil war between the U.S.-backed government and Taliban insurgents. Today the situation appears much more dire, with the Taliban making significant territorial gains even before our exit has been completed and American intelligence now predicting the capital of Afghanistan "could be overrun within six to 12 months of the U.S. military departing." That could portend scenes of officials and troops stationed at the American embassy in Kabul fleeing before advancing enemy forces, just as they did with the fall of Saigon in April 1975.
Republicans (and more hawkish Democrats) are bound to cry bloody murder over the national humiliation. Never mind that Biden has been enacting a version of the policy that former President Donald Trump pursued but lacked the wherewithal to implement. The fact that the withdrawal (and resulting mess) will have taken place during a Democratic administration hands the GOP a huge political gift. They will be freed up to continue advocating for the "America First" policies their voters want while blaming Biden for the consequences of following through on them.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
That's going to be bad, but just how bad will depend on other considerations. If Biden seems weak on other issues, the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban will serve as vivid confirmation of his administration's fecklessness. But if he's proven effective in getting key parts of his agenda through a narrowly divided Congress, then it's possible that most Americans will withhold blame for the chaos in Kabul.
No one will be happy to see theocratic barbarians rout a military we trained for two decades at a cost of more than two thousand lives and two trillion dollars. Yet the very fact of that outcome will serve as powerful confirmation that Biden's (and Trump's) instincts were correct: The mission couldn't be accomplished, which means the mission had to be abandoned.
If Biden can make that case cogently, he may be able to ride out the coming storm without a scratch.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Damon Linker is a senior correspondent at TheWeek.com. He is also a former contributing editor at The New Republic and the author of The Theocons and The Religious Test.
-
Quiz of The Week: 14 - 20 September
Puzzles and Quizzes Have you been paying attention to The Week's news?
By The Week Staff Published
-
The Week Unwrapped: Are we in the Mattel Cinematic Universe?
Podcast Plus can Japan crack its demographic crisis, and what does national debt actually mean?
By The Week Staff Published
-
Van Gogh: Poets and Lovers – a 'scintillating' and 'unmissable' show
The Week Recommends Exhibition at London's National Gallery features a 'stunning array' of paintings from the last two years of the artist's life
By The Week UK Published
-
Trump assassination attempt: do former presidents need more protection?
Today's Big Question Secret Service director says 'paradigm shift' needed after second Trump attack sparks calls for more resources
By The Week UK Published
-
What has Kamala Harris done as vice president?
In Depth It's not uncommon for the second-in-command to struggle to prove themselves in a role largely defined by behind-the-scenes work
By Theara Coleman, The Week US Published
-
Is the media 'sanewashing' Trump?
Talking Points Critics say there's a disconnect between 'reality and reported news'
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
The killing of an American in the West Bank could strain US-Israeli relations
The explainer Is the growing outcry from the Biden administration over the IDF killing of American citizen Aysenur Ezgi Eygi a prelude to changes in US foreign policy in the region?
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
How might the GOP's Afghanistan report impact the presidential race?
Today's Big Question House Republicans are blaming the Biden administration, but the White House is pushing back
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Tucker Carlson's WWII interview fractures conservatives
Talking Points Holocaust revisionism forces 'introspection' in right-wing media
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Who will win the 2024 presidential election?
In Depth Election year is here. Who are pollsters and experts predicting to win the White House?
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Harris, Biden campaign together at union rally
Speed Read The sitting president and Democratic presidential nominee joined forces in battleground state Pennsylvania
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published