This is truly a very somber and unkind day in American history, as the last US troops depart from Afghanistan after two decades of trying to prevent what took eleven days to be inevitable.
The Taliban, in less than two weeks, overtook the entire nation, easily besting the Afghan security forces that the US had been training for 20 years, and running the President of the country out of Kabul on a plane.
And while this is all plenty shocking already, the fact that the US has now admitted to abandoning Americans abroad is mind-blowing.
Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby made the stunning admission on live television.
MSNBC “Morning Joe” co-host Willie Geist asked Kirby, “What is your message to those Afghans whose lives are now in danger quite literally moment to moment who fought alongside us and believed that they had a commitment from the United States to help them get out when it was time?”
“I would tell them, Willie, that they still have that commitment,” Kirby replied. “We thank them for their service. We’re grateful for what they did. And we moved out an incredible number in a span of two weeks, 123,000, the vast majority of which were Afghans, Afghan allies, people like them who helped us. As Gen. McKenzie said yesterday, we’re heartbroken that we couldn’t get everybody out, but they still have our commitment, they still have the commitment of this administration and the United States, and we’re going to do everything we can to continue to try to get them out of that country and out safely.
For much of America, the news is not only heartbreaking but devastatingly embarrassing as well.
