Posted on 04/17/2021 5:14:03 AM PDT by Kaslin
In late November, a meeting of the House Armed Services Committee met to discuss Trump’s proposal to withdraw troops in Afghanistan. Out of the 57 members present, only Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida recommended a full withdrawal from the country, stating that “...the corruption in Afghanistan is unsolvable, the war in unwinnable, and the strategy is undecipherable.” A Joe Biden-authorized air-strike in Syria this February drew widespread praise from multiple GOP officials, including Sen. Marco Rubio, Sen. Lindsey Graham, Sen. Jim Inhofe, and Rep. Mike McCaul. Meanwhile, critics of the strike included Sen. Rand Paul, Rep. Thomas Massie, Rep. Nancy Mace, and Donald Trump, Jr. who quipped at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC): “Who would have thought that within 33 days, we’d be bombing the Middle East again?” CPAC 2021 was, incidentally, also devoid of neocons, highlighting the foreign policy divide within the GOP.
The true foreign policy litmus test, however, is Biden’s announcement that all U.S. troops will be withdrawn from Afghanistan by September 2021. Blowback from establishment Republicans was immediate, led by the usual suspects, Sens. Mitch McConnell, Graham, and Inhofe, along with Rep. Liz Cheney. Suggestive headlines lambasting the decision were also peppered across multiple conservative websites, including The Daily Wire, Fox News, and Daily Caller. These pro-interventionist responses emphasize that, while the anti-war wing of the conservative movement has gained significant ground over the past decade, a wide schism remains regarding foreign policy within the Republican party.
(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...
20 years, totally worth it...
I am sure that Alexander the Great asked himself many times: Why am I still here?
There...fixed it.
We broke the Soviet Union by tying them down in Afghanistan and now we have done the same thing to ourselves. The only consistent winner throughout has been war profiteers and their lackeys
NOT MENTIONED IN THE ARTICLE..
President Trump’s already-negotiated deal with the Taliban for complete troop withdrawal by May 1, 2021, and...
...SloJoe’s alteration of the withdrawal to fall on one of The Muslim Caliphate’s most famous victories over the Infidel...9/11.
Joe Biden set the date for withdrawal. It is his decision, not the GOP’s. Why this is a litmus test for the Rep’s is beyond me. The Dems own it.
Bush League Republicans want to stay.
“I am sure that Alexander the Great asked himself many times: Why am I still here?”
In the 20 years were were stuck there, Alex could have conquered the whole world three times over.
The only 2 solutions to Afghanistan:
1. Never go there
2. Kill every single human alive
0Biden will get the credit in the media for the withdrawal and any problems will be the GOP’s fault. Got it.
My position has been somewhat on the fence, out of respect for those already fallen in Afghanistan - does quitting honor and respect them?
I hate the answer I have personally come to - my opinion. No it doesn’t, but quitting Afghanistan is necessary in spite of that fact.
The source of the problem is not in leaving Afghanistan. The source of the problem is that there was no “winning” in Afghanistan capable of insuring a non-Taliban controlled government unless the approach to such a victory was conducted like World War II - throwing everything into it, no means denied, no area off limits (including western Pakistan), nothing but unconditional surrender or elimination of the opponent. Total war.
But GWBush obviously knew what was needed was not possible, for a number of reasons.
One reason was the ongoing multidimensional war in Iraq - U.S. trying to build a new Iraq via elections with Iran backed Shia militias and terrorists fighting the U.S. and fighting Sunni terrorists and terrorizing Sunni civilians, while Sunni militias and terrorists also fought the U.S. while fighting the terrorists and militias backed by Iran.
The second reason was in part related to the first. The U.S. public was not going to go along with a WWII style war in Afghanistan, which would have correctly needed to include part of the territory of Pakistan as well, and could have spilt over to other areas adjacent to Afghanistan. That just was not going to get U.S. public approval.
Then knowing what he had to know - we were not going to get the victory that was needed Afghanistan, and were depending 100% on an unknown we could not control - a “democratic Afghanistan strong enough for IT to defeat the Taliban” Bush went ahead anyway. Only sufficient ignorance about Afghanistan would lead you to think that was a good bet.
But we tried anyway.
There is one caveat to it all.
Was doing what we did in Afghanistan worth it only up to the point where we finally got Bin Laden? Maybe. But if so, then (a) that should have caused an immediate break with Pakistan (THEY WERE SHILEDING HIM) and (b) and we should have then left Afghanistan. I also cannot imagine our total intelligence operations that finally traced the whereabouts of Bin Laden to have been possible without all our operations on the ground in Afghanistan that contributed to building that chain of information.
So yes, we should now leave Afghanistan and yes I will cry for our lives lost in an effort we have to admittedly abandon.
HOWEVER, Biden is TREASONOUS giving the Muslim extremists their grand victory of making the date of our withdrawal the celebratory date of their attacks on our territory - September 11th.
Biden should have stayed with Trump’s May 2021 withdrawal time line.
“The only 2 solutions to Afghanistan:
1. Never go there
2. Kill every single human alive”
Trump’s big mistake was he should have pulled out of the mess day one. He should then have made clear that if for any reason we had to come back, it would be a very different war.
I think we only have 2500 ground forces left there...if that keeps the goblins at bay somewhat then I’m for it
True, but the Dems make the decision. They should be held responsible for whatever transpires. Otherwise, the Dems will claim credit if all goes well or blame the Reps if it doesn’t. This is the Dems’ litmus test. Biden has set the date of 9/11 for the withdrawal of all troops. Hopefully, our Embassy personnel will be protected.
Never should have sent troops in the first place. Just bombed the mountains flat. The defense contractors need new wars all the time to keep making money, and they buy the politicians. That’s why the US is still there.
2500 folks there are to protect the Dept of State & DOD folks in Kabul...
The rest of the country is going to be lit...
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