OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Joe Biden left the White House late last week to begin a two-week summer vacation in Delaware as multiple crises escalate in the U.S. and across the world.
Biden was forced to return to the White House on Monday to deliver a press conference on the situation in Afghanistan.
After giving his address, Biden headed back to Camp David and it’s unclear what he plans to do.
— Philip Melanchthon Wegmann (@PhilipWegmann) August 16, 2021
Biden was slammed by many Twitter users for his decision to leave the White House again.
I don’t understand… https://t.co/jhnIqIPniq
— Meghan McCain (@MeghanMcCain) August 16, 2021
I'm sorry what?
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) August 16, 2021
Pres. Biden just concluded his speech on Afghanistan, taking no questions afterwards. The White House notes he will now return to Camp David.
— Shelby Talcott (@ShelbyTalcott) August 16, 2021
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy has slammed Biden for his handling for his mismanagement of the withdrawal of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, which have descended into chaos over the weekend as Taliban forces seized much of the country and collapsed the Afghan government.
McCarthy is now calling for investigations into Biden’s handling of the crisis and made his remarks late Sunday as Taliban forces moved to overrun Afghanistan’s capital city of Kabul.
Making his remarks on Punchbowl News, McCarthy called Biden’s decision to remove the totality of US troops from Afghanistan “a mistake that will haunt us for decades,” highlighting the president’s choice to select September 11 as the target date for total withdrawal from the country.
McCarthy pointed out that it was also a mistake to withdraw US forces “during the Summer, when [the Taliban is] at their height.”
The Hill reports that the Republican has indicated that he will be moving forward with investigations to probe the failures of the Biden administration and both US and allied intelligence that led to the debacle. He wants to know what the intelligence community knew in the weeks and months ahead of Afghanistan’s collapse.
McCarthy’s remarks have been echoed by other top Republicans including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and former President Donald Trump, the latter who demanded Biden’s resignation over his policy failures and the crisis in Afghanistan.
As the situation deteriorated in the region, the Pentagon announced it will be deploying up to 6,000 troops to assist with the evacuation of US personnel.
Conservative Brief reported on Monday that the Pentagon is planning to authorize the evacuation of upwards of 30,000 Afghans and relocate them to US military bases.
“When I came to office, I inherited a deal cut by my predecessor—which he invited the Taliban to discuss at Camp David on the eve of 9/11 of 2019—that left the Taliban in the strongest position militarily since 2001 and imposed a May 1, 2021 deadline on US forces. Shortly before he left office, he also drew US forces down to a bare minimum of 2,500,” Biden stated of the situation.
“Therefore, when I became President, I faced a choice—follow through on the deal, with a brief extension to get our Forces and our allies’ Forces out safely, or ramp up our presence and send more American troops to fight once again in another country’s civil conflict,” he added. “I was the fourth President to preside over an American troop presence in Afghanistan—two Republicans, two Democrats. I would not, and will not, pass this war onto a fifth.”
Making matters worse, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki is taking a break from her duties at the same time as the Taliban have taken control of Afghanistan.
Psaki is apparently out for the entire week.