Biden only telling half the Afghan withdrawal story

On Wednesday, President Biden announced the U.S. would withdraw all troops from Afghanistan by September 11, just five months off.

That was the Big Story trumpeted by U.S. media to relief of a majority of Americans who want this senseless, wasteful, endless war ended.

But within hours, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ‘hinted’ that the U.S. will likely keep a “counterterrorism” force just across the Afghan border to strike targets deep inside Afghanistan as needed. Austin said, “In terms of our ability to acquire targets and engage them in places where we are not … we have the reach and the ability to in fact do that.”

It gets worse. Biden Press Secretary Jen Psaki refused to deny, when asked, if Biden might keep special operations inside Afghanistan after September 11.

When it comes to America’s perpetual wars in the Middle East and Africa, it’s wise to avoid early celebration of any peaceful initiative till we get, like famed commentator Paul Harvey use to give us, The Rest of the Story.

September 11 Afghan pullout announcement may get U.S. troops there killed

The media is heralding President Biden’s announcement he’ll withdraw all U.S. forces from Afghanistan by September 11. Their emphasis on Biden’s decision to completely withdraw from Afghanistan misses the big story: Biden’s refusal to honor Trump’s May 1, 2021 withdrawal promise puts U.S. troops in harm’s way.

Why? The Taliban, whom Trump agreed with fifteen months ago to be out by this May 1, have met their obligation not to kill any more troops defiling their country for the past 20 years. But they were up front that attacks would resume if we reneged.

The Taliban kept their bargain, not killing a single U.S. soldier in over 14 months. The U.S. did not, claiming Trump negotiated a lousy, unrealistic deal. Biden had no intention to meet the May 1, 2021 deadline. He’s under enormous pressure form the Military Industrial Complex to stay there at least till he can hand off the Afghan quagmire to his successor. The argument is if we leave, the Taliban will take control of Afghanistan and allow bad guys to again plan knocking down U.S. landmarks. That’s a business plan for a forever war in Afghanistan, just like it is in Iraq, Syria and every other country we senselessly interfere with.

By breaking Trump’s agreement to get out, arguably the only sensible foreign policy decision Trump made in 4 years, Biden has put a target on all 3,500 U.S. troops there, well as the 7,000 NATO and other allies’ troops. When the first one gets killed the U.S. hawks will charge, ‘See, the Taliban are still a threat and we must stay to protect the homeland.”

This October 7 marks the 20th anniversary of the Afghan war. Don’t be surprised if it makes it to its 3rd decade.

3 centuries of restrictive citizenship laws

 

Republicans claim their hundreds of voting restriction bills in dozens of states are not designed to repress voting by minorities, the struggling; indeed any likely Democratic voter.

That’s akin to the 19th century authors of the Black Codes claiming they were designed to help newly freed slaves. They’re like the 20th century advocates of Nuremburg Laws claiming they were uplifting to Jews.

Another century, another descent into evil governance.

Blinken holds up his own children to justify murderous U.S. policy in Syria

 Secretary Antony Blinken

@SecBlinken

"When I think of the suffering of the Syrian people, including Syrian children, I think of my own two children. How could we not take action to help them? Our common humanity demands it. Shame on us if we don't."

Alas, Antony Blinken's actions in government caused the deaths of tens of thousands of children in Iraq and Syria going back to the run up of the murderous, criminal Iraq war 18 years ago. He was chief adviser promoting then Senator Biden's support of that war; support Biden now regrets. Biden's response to Blinken's folly? Allow him to fail up to Secretary of State.

As a foreign policy adviser in the Obama administration, Blinken supported cruel and murderous sanctions as well as arming vicious jihadists in service of Syrian regime change. His efforts prevented an early Assad victory that could have saved as many as a hundred thousand needless deaths from U.S. interference.

Now, even tho Syrian President Assad prevailed, lowering the death toll, Blinken keeps the sanction on, causing degraded health and death from lack of medicine and starvation from lack of food.

It's ghoulish for Blinken to hold his kids up as an example and reason for his continued decade long crusade to punish Syrian civilians in furtherance of his murderous regime change policies.

Blinken's shame is not from inaction...it's from murderous action no decent person would contemplate, much less take.