Afghanistan, One Year Later

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Looking Back At The Afghanistan Withdrawal

One year ago today, President Joe Biden's plan to withdraw American forces was underway. In the wake of this withdrawal, 13 servicemen died. American citizens and allies were stranded behind enemy lines. The country fell to the Taliban in mere days.

800 Americans - way more than originally reported by the Biden administration - were rescued from Afghanistan.

Now, an investigation by the House Foreign Affairs Committee’s Republican staff has found that 800 Americans were helped out of Afghanistan, indicating that the Biden administration either undercounted the number of Americans who wanted to depart the country or saw an uptick in the number of citizens willing to leave.
A committee aide suggested it’s possible the number of Americans citizens whisked out of Afghanistan may yet be higher. “Whether they had travel documents or whether they could get to Kabul, that was part of that factor,” the staffer said, referring to those left behind after the frenzied evacuation last August.
The true number could be closer to 1,000, the aide said, to include those who left Afghanistan via privately funded organizations — many of which were aided by outreach attempts from advisers to Vice President Kamala Harris and First Lady Jill Biden, the investigation found. Those separate efforts were necessary in part because only 36 U.S. consular officers were on the ground in Kabul to help process the evacuees, the report concludes.

We have yet to get any honest answers from the Biden administration on the debacle.

Liz Cheney Is Doomed

Youtube via Fox News

One of the loudest Republican voices in the anti-Trump movement, Liz Cheney staked her entire political career on an impeachment vote and the January 6 Committee. The most recent poll in Wyoming has her down 29 points ahead of tomorrow's Republican primary for the state's sole House seat. It should be noted that this isn't entirely about Trump. I have an explainer here (be sure to sign up for my email newsletter there).

Josh Guillory Is Back

Lafayette Parish President Josh Guillory has returned to work after a 21-day stint at a rehab facility in Texas. In a press conference today, Guillory spoke to the media about the stay, addressing concerns raised by critics on a number of issues.

There are issues with his absence, but there is also a new issue being raised by The Current about a construction company he owns. Guillory took questions but did not allow follow-ups on that subject.

Headlines Of the Day

New Georgia Poll Is Bad News for Stacey Abrams, Worse for Raphael Warnock (RedState)
Livingston librarian sues Lafayette conservative group, director Michael Lunsford for harassment (The Advocate)
Why Abortion Has Become a Centerpiece of Democratic TV Ads in 2022 (New York Times)
Inside the Massive Effort to Change the Way Kids Are Taught to Read (Time)
Atlantic op-ed claims Catholic rosary has become ‘an extremist symbol’ - (Fox News)

Tweet Of The Day

Hurricane Preparation, What Are the Items You Didn't Think Of?

When there is word that a hurricane might threaten the Gulf Coast, we start thinking about what items we need to make life bearable if we end up stuck at home without electricity and internet.

In addition to these creature comforts, we also need to think about the many things that we would need to take with us if we are forced to evacuate.

While we all immediately think of things like prescription medicines and important papers, there are other things that can come in handy whether we will be stuck at home, at a relative's house, or in a shelter.