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Biden’s Afghan Political Calculations Have a Basis: Benghazi
Remember the movie, “13 hours?” It was about the courageous work of six CIA contractors to defend an American consulate – excuse me, a “Temporary Mission Facility” – in Benghazi, Libya, about a year after long-time Libyan strongman Muammar Qaddafi was, shall we say, terminated. Actor John Krasinski shed his “The Office” image in a breakout role. 
The facility was overrun by terrorists resulting in the deaths of four Americans, including Ambassador Christopher Stephens. Why the US military never responded remains a mystery, and we still do not know to this day where President Obama was. We surmise that President Obama didn’t want to be interrupted with an early morning flight to Nevada for a campaign trip and upcoming debate with GOP nominee Mitt Romney.
Things were left to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta who, through the lack of any directive from the President and a lack of resolve on their part, never dispatched US military assets to protect American lives. Not really their fault – that is on Obama.
Not long after the Benghazi debacle became public, the Obama White House dispatched then-National Security Advisor Susan Rice to all three Sunday morning news programs to blame an anti-Muslim “internet video” for the violence that resulted in the Benghazi attack.
We now know she lied. But she’s now President Biden’s Director of his Domestic Policy Council. And guess who admitted she lied, with their strong support? Then Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes and Deputy Chief of Staff Jake Sullivan. This, from emails obtained by FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) requests by Judicial Watch:
While Rhodes isn’t part of the Biden universe today, Sullivan is now Biden’s National Security Advisor. Personnel is policy, as Ronald Reagan once said. And this is the “personnel” Biden voters gave us last November. The Afghanistan debacle should not surprise anyone.
And sure enough, Obama was reelected handily, defeating Romney with more than 300 electoral votes less than two months later. Where did Benghazi rate on post-election polls? Pretty low. One pollster suggested Romney “blew it” on Benghazi. Romney blew the election in plenty of other ways as well.
So, what does this have to do with Biden’s calculations on Afghanistan?
Let’s turn to a reliable Democratic and pro-Biden outlet, CNN, and odious partisan shill Chris Cizzilla, who may be one of the few last remaining “journalists” who instinctively genuflects at nearly everything Biden does on Afghanistan.
Biden believes that you don’t care about Afghanistan. Or, maybe more accurately, that you won’t care about it by the time the 2022 (and 2024) elections rolls around.
He — and his top aides– wouldn’t put it that way, of course.
But every signal he and they are sending makes clear that they simply do not believe the debacle of the last 10 days will be a voting issue for most Americans.
Start with Biden’s first speech on Afghanistan six days ago — his first major remarks since the Taliban effectively took over the country. While Biden bowed to the dangers posed by the need to evacuate thousands of Americans from the country, he was resolute about his decision to withdraw all American troops from the country.
Here’s the key bit: “I stand squarely behind my decision. After 20 years, I’ve learned the hard way that there was never a good time to withdraw US forces.”
The message was clear: We are not staying in Afghanistan indefinitely — no matter how ugly things look right now.
Biden really thinks you won’t care, long term (by the 2022 elections), about Afghanistan. You’ll get over the damage to American prestige, honor, and respect among allies. You’ll ignore the story of an Afghan who helped us and crawled through raw sewage with his US-issued Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) toward the Kabul airport, only to be turned away to a certain, gruesome death. You’ll move on to his vaunted “infrastructure” and massive spending plans to put all kinds of dollars into the pockets of Democratic voters at the expense of higher taxes on so-called wealthy folks. Are you one of them?
Is that true? After all, 80 million supposedly voted for Biden and all his “build back better” nonsense. And over 60 million Americans voted to reelect Barack Obama after he abandoned Americans in Benghazi. Why are we surprised by Biden’s political calculations? I’m not.
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“What difference does it make!?!”
Rice and Sullivan are probably right. (I doubt Biden actually has the cognitive ability to ascertain the nuances, ramifications and reactions of Americans to this situation) The soccer moms will be happy that we are out of Afghanistan (so messy!) grateful for more day care, and free community college (wow!) Fully embracing their white guilt and supportive of CRT and masks forever, because you know, safety.
Unless the center has someone to rally around, it won’t make a difference.
I hope a multitude of “someone’s” rise to the occasion, at every level of every elected office. But as mentioned before, without faith in the electoral process, “what difference does it make?”
Absolutely. Those of us who got all black-pilled and ornery in 2012 on exactly this basis… are going to the bathroom. I’ve been hanging a #Benghazi tag on many of my Afghanistan posts. This AFG pullout debacle is the answer to Hillary’s “What difference” question. Because if accountability is not sought — and had — after the fact, then it will happen again.
And here we are.
Yeah. Biden has nothing to do with this. This is Obama’s third term, via Rice and Klain. Oh and the Obama wing finally bumped off the Clinton wing.
Now there’s a war for the US between China and Xi, and Davos/Basil and Soros.
Biden’s administration is with 0bama and Soros, and Biden himself is (for unknown reasons) pro-Xi.
Not that it matters at all, but I keep going back and forth as to whether it is John Kerry or Obama. Perhaps Obama is closer to John Kerry in his thinking than I had realized. Or something.
Wow. Who to root for? Tough choice.
(Shhh. Trump.)
Biden doesn’t actually care about the things listed above for America, but he does care in one respect. This disaster, debacle, and death was caused by a hurried withdrawal from Afghanistan all for the sake of being able to brag about having us completely out in speeches he gave, press releases put out, sycophants’ statements in White House press briefings, and propaganda pushed in friendly media on the 20th anniversary of 9/11.
Biden cares about prestige, honor, respect among allies, and legacy, but only his own. In the completely incompetent way he’s tried to burnish all of those things for himself, he’s accomplished the exact opposite and brought a lot of death, suffering, and anguish to other people all over the world in the process. It’s only getting worse with the suicide bombing that happened near the Kabul airport in the last few hours.
Legacy. Optics. Narrative. Political advantage. That’s all Biden cares about, and who cares who suffers or is killed in the process. “That was four days ago!” is the new “What difference does it make?!”
He’s right. I work in a deep blue area and most of the folks I’m in contact with are completely ignoring this and don’t care. The same is true for the southern border crises, they aren’t even aware it’s happening.
They will pull the levers for the “D” in 2022 and 2024 as if none of it ever happened.
First of all, Biden won’t be around for the next election. Secondly, Trump won the nomination and ultimately the election thanks to Obama, sort of, I would say, Obama’s legacy. People were fed up with Obama lying to us about ACA, Benghazi, IRS, FBI, Solyndra, etc. and Trump had the audacity to call them out on it. If there is a Republican candidate in the crowd that’s not afraid to call the Dem’s out on their short comings, he’s got a good chance of being elected. And oh yeah, no Republican debates in the lions den, only in a neutral site (if there is such a thing) or a friendly site, so that our message can get out without the interruptions of one of the “neutral moderators” interrupting with their erroneous objections.
Agreed, but this situation in Afghanistan will be much harder to lie about and cover up. I hope it doesn’t just blow over though. The lack of understand regarding Afghanistan among people younger than 30 might help that though.
BTW 13 hours was a really good movie I thought.
Scott McKay, in his post in American Spectator today, theorizes that there is more than incompetence and callousness in Biden’s withdrawal from Afghanistan: That there is clear intent to harm the US.
The conspiracy theory that Leftists want to destroy the US does not seem too far fetched. The US remains the beacon of liberty, which is anathema to the Left. The Davos crowd wants global government and no say from the hoc poloi, aka, the voters in America, a la the centralized, unresponsive government of the European Union. They want an emasculated America that cannot counter the globalists and their economic interests. Removing the US currency as the world’s default currency would go a long way toward accomplishing that goal. The collapse of an American led NATO would help as well.
With the comparison of Kabul to Benghazi, one sees a virtually identical policy in the Biden Administration as in the Obama administration, of which he was a part. Do something supposedly in American interests, sell it, however preposterously, as such, botch it entirely, blame others, and in the process, arm terrorists (the Islamic State in Obama’s case, the Taliban, et. al. in Biden’s case). Meanwhile emasculate the American economy by shutting down oil pipelines, the energy sector, and doing COVID lockdowns ad infinitum.
Clearly, the same people who ran Obama run Biden. Only they are getting a little nervous, I think. Note George Soro’s recent opinion piece in the WSJ (incredible that the WSJ would publish such a thing). Perhaps it was gaslighting, but Soros seemed worried about—China! He sees clearly that Xi is trying to return to the old days of total control, and is willing to take down anyone he dislikes, such as Jack Ma. And the Chinese economy with him. No criticizing Xi. No innovation not approved by Xi. Xi now seems to be trying to destroy the part of China’s economy that is more or less free market. He simply took Ma’s company away from him. Perhaps even Soros, who seems to want to control the world, like one of those old Bond villains, is a little nervous that, not the US, but China, will frustrate his goals of economic hegemony sought with the help of his friends from Davos. Yellin is on board with him of course, as is the Biden administration. Collaborative central government (authoritarian) control that can be controlled by corporate interests is in Soros’ interest. Authoritarian government that threatens to control Soros is not in his (or his Davos friends’) interest. Obama and now Biden, seem intent on catering to Soros’ interests. Certainly not America’s interests. But if they take America down too soon, Soros and friends will go down with them, and wind up in some re- education camp along with Jack Ma or the Uighers.
And they need to be debating long before it gets to the debates. They can debate with the news media any time they want.
Very well put.