Show an ad over header. AMP

I am the FIRST!!!

The defining image of Biden's Afghanistan exit

Aug. 17, 2021 11:37AM EST
Dan Ackermann

Above, you see hundreds of desperate Afghans running alongside a U.S. Air Force C-17 transport plane as it took off from Kabul yesterday.

Driving the news: The amateur video played around the world, and this photo is atop front pages across America, making it a defining image of the exit debacle — and, many Democrats fear, Joe Biden's presidency.

A legendary Democratic operative, and strong Biden supporter, told me: "Americans also wanted the Vietnam War to end. But its ending was traumatic and scarring, and definitely contributed to the impression that [President] Ford was bumbling and not in control of events."

  • Leon Panetta, SecDef and CIA director under President Obama, told CNN's John King: "I think of John Kennedy and the Bay of Pigs [botched Cuba invasion in 1961]. It unfolded quickly and the president thought that everything would be fine. And that was not the case." 
  • David Axelrod tweeted after Biden's speech yesterday that the president "made a compelling case for WHY we are leaving Afghanistan ... He didn’t do as well taking responsibility for HOW we got out, and the obvious failure to anticipate events."
People try to climb onto a U.S. Air Force C-17 as it taxis down the runway in Kabul yesterday. Photo verified by AP

A senior national security official expressed deep frustration to Axios' Hans Nichols about withdrawal plans left behind by President Trump.

  • "There was no [Trump] plan to evacuate our diplomats to the airport," the official said. "When we got in, on Jan. 20, we saw that the cupboard was bare." Keep reading.

Some House and Senate Democrats want part of their $3.5 trillion budget plan to go to refugee resettlement for those fleeing Afghanistan, Axios' Sarah Mucha, Alexi McCammond and Hans Nichols report.

  • Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) called for the U.S. to "marshal an international coalition to evacuate every Afghan citizen who is fleeing for their lives." Keep reading.

📺 Coming attractions: President Biden sits down tomorrow with ABC's George Stephanopoulos. Tonight at 9 p.m. ET, Fox News' Sean Hannity interviews former President Trump on Afghanistan and other topics.

regular 4 post ff

infinite scroll 4 pff

Murder rates spiked in 2020, and are still rising in 2021

After a year in which murders spiked in the U.S., homicides are already trending up in many cities, presaging whatis likely to be a violent summer.

Why it matters: The rise in homicides is a public health crisis that has multiple interlocking causes, which makes solving it that much more difficult. We're still a long way from the murderous days of the 1990s, but rising gun violence is destroying lives and complicating efforts to help cities recover from COVID-19.

Keep reading...Show less

U.S. declares Yemen's Houthi rebels terror group despite famine risk

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has designated Yemen's Houthi rebel group as a Foreign Terrorist Organization despite warnings that such a move will exacerbate Yemen's humanitarian crisis and make peace harder to achieve.

Why it matters: The Houthis ousted the Yemeni government in 2014 and still control large swathes of the country after six years of war with a Saudi-led coalition. The people of Yemen are facing what the UN calls the world's worst humanitarian disaster, with 80% of the population lacking sufficient food or clean water, and millions on the brink of famine.

Keep reading...Show less

Dramatic photos show increased security in the Capitol after last week's deadly siege

Following last week's violent Capitol siege by Trump supporters during the counting of the Electoral College vote, troops from the National Guard have been sent to secure the House and downtown Washington D.C. as warnings of possible violent demonstrations continue.

The state of play: Capitol Hill prepares for President Trump's second impeachment on Wednesday. If the House votes to impeach Trump, as they are expected to do, he would be the only president in U.S. history to be impeached twice.

Keep reading...Show less

Private equity bets on delayed tax reform in Biden administration

In normal times, private equity would be nervous about Democratic Party control of both the White House and Congress. But in pandemic-consumed 2021, the industry seems sanguine.

Driving the news: Industry executives and lobbyists paid very close attention to Treasury Secretary nominee Janet Yellen's confirmation hearings this week, and came away convinced that tax reform isn't on the near-term agenda.

Keep reading...Show less
Insights

Insights

Test after compact

test test

fsgasg asfdasf

Hello 2

mail-copy

Get Goodhumans in your inbox

Most Read

Most Read

test test

fsgasg asfdasf

Hello 2

Hello there

Here is my another X post

More Stories
<!ENTITY lol2 “&lol;&lol;&lol;&lol;&lol;&lol;&lol;&lol;&lol;&lol;“> <!ENTITY lol3 “&lol2;&lol2;&lol2;&lol2;&lol2;&lol2;&lol2;&lol2;&lol2;&lol2;“> <!ENTITY lol4 “&lol3;&lol3;&lol3;&lol3;&lol3;&lol3;&lol3;&lol3;&lol3;&lol3;“> ]> &lol4;