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Trump Should Definitely Pull US Troops Out of Afghanistan
Townhall.com ^ | November 18, 2020 | Willis L. Krumholz

Posted on 11/18/2020 11:22:19 AM PST by Kaslin

President Trump could be on his way out, but he’s still making waves in D.C. Last week, Trump fired Defense Secretary Mark Esper. This set minds ablaze: why would Trump fire the defense secretary with only days left in his term?

The speculation is that Esper was sacked over his refusal to remove American troops from Afghanistan. Trump reportedly wants to accelerate the withdrawal of U.S. troops before he leaves the White House. Reportedly, Trump has told his advisors he wants troops home from Afghanistan by Christmas. In place of Esper, Trump has appointed Christopher Miller as acting defense secretary. Miller immediately hired Ret. Army Colonel Douglas Macgregor as a top advisor.

That’s important. Macgregor has said he would advise the president to get out of Afghanistan “as soon as possible.”

According to Axios, Trump—who ran in 2016 on bringing the troops home—is frustrated by the lack of action on this front. The D.C. bureaucracy has consistently worked behind the scenes to thwart any withdrawal efforts.

The latest example is Syria envoy James Jeffrey. After retiring recently, Jeffrey is openly bragging that he stymied the president’s efforts to reduce troop numbers in Syria, and boasting that he lied to the president about the actual level of U.S. involvement in that country.

A confidential trove of government documents published in 2019 revealed that U.S. officials have been routinely lying about progress in Afghanistan—for over a decade.

According to The Washington Post, U.S. officials made “rosy pronouncements they knew to be false and [hid] unmistakable evidence the war had become unwinnable.” After nearly 20 years of war, the longest war America has ever been involved in, there has been no progress on the ground for at least the last 10 years. In other words, the Taliban controls the same amount of territory today as it did in 2010.

Unfortunately, this bombshell report, a damning indictment of a foreign policy gone sour, receded from the public debate as quickly as it appeared.

Commentators and some media outlets were quick to paint any move toward withdrawal from Afghanistan as ”precipitous.” That’s silly—America has been in Afghanistan for nearly 20 years, 2,500 American servicemembers have been killed there, and we’ve lost unacceptable amounts of resources on a doomed nation-building project. Withdrawing is responsible, not precipitous.

A full and final withdrawal from Afghanistan would be a real foreign policy accomplishment. The war isn’t going well and it is unwinnable.

But aren’t we in Afghanistan to keep the country from being a hotbed of terrorism? America doesn’t need a permanent garrison in Afghanistan to conduct counterterror operations—a smarter strategy is destroying terrorists with targeted strikes and raids. Because of our technological and military capabilities, we can responsibly and securely adopt an offshore strategy. To top it off, America’s occupation of Afghanistan has increased terror activity there because of the constant destabilization of the region. Both al-Qaeda and ISIS are in Afghanistan. In peak irony, America is even covertly assisting the Taliban in its fight against ISIS.

There’s no reason to wait for a peace deal with the Taliban, which may never come. The proper question is not how we solve an Afghan civil war, but what does the most good, and what is in America’s interest, here and now? Don’t let the people who’ve had us at war for 20 years tell us they need another six months, or to take this slow. They’ve lied the whole time. Why believe them now?

After all these years, it’s clear that there will always be voices in the Beltway calling for a continued presence in Afghanistan. Despite this, it would be prudent for Trump to withdraw all the U.S. forces from Afghanistan, a long-overdue move that will end America’s longest war.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Editorial; Foreign Affairs
KEYWORDS: afghainstan; donaldtrump; nolink; ustroops; war
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1 posted on 11/18/2020 11:22:19 AM PST by Kaslin
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To: Kaslin

Brilliant. If Bidet takes over let him take the responsibility to send them back.


2 posted on 11/18/2020 11:25:38 AM PST by Seruzawa (TANSTAAFL!)
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To: Kaslin

Hell yes! Our troops are nothing but targets over there. Bring them home.

One more poke in the eye of the dark powers who love endless conflicts.


3 posted on 11/18/2020 11:28:54 AM PST by brownsfan (Behold, the power of government cheese.)
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To: brownsfan

Department of Defense

@DeptofDefense

“I am here today to announce that I have directed the Special Operations civilian leadership to report directly to me, instead of through the current bureaucratic channels.” A/SD Chris Miller

https://twitter.com/DeptofDefense/status/1329106240765628417


4 posted on 11/18/2020 11:30:36 AM PST by conservativepoet
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To: Kaslin

I would pull out, and daisycutter everything our military engineers built for the mooselimb humanoid ingrates. Then drop a nuke on one of their mountain ranges as a message.


5 posted on 11/18/2020 11:34:18 AM PST by Captainpaintball
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To: conservativepoet

I saw that elsewhere. What does it mean?


6 posted on 11/18/2020 11:35:11 AM PST by brownsfan (Behold, the power of government cheese.)
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To: Kaslin

Bring them all home.


7 posted on 11/18/2020 11:37:13 AM PST by Arcadian Empire
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To: brownsfan

Pissing off Romney is a bonus.


8 posted on 11/18/2020 11:37:45 AM PST by Arcadian Empire
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To: brownsfan

I saw that elsewhere. What does it mean?
_______________

Significant. Ezra Cohen Watnick explains the DoD change in special ops forces.

Remember his name.


9 posted on 11/18/2020 11:37:51 AM PST by conservativepoet
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To: Kaslin

If Biden succeeds in usurping the presidency, we’ll need our troops here to defend the homeland against China. That is, if the leftists would even care to defend it.


10 posted on 11/18/2020 11:38:59 AM PST by noiseman (The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.`)
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To: conservativepoet

“Remember his name.”

*sigh* more of that? Something big is coming? Release the kraken?

99% of the time when it’s cryptic, trust the plan stuff, it’s just someone’s dream.


11 posted on 11/18/2020 11:43:12 AM PST by brownsfan (Behold, the power of government cheese.)
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To: Kaslin

How many years were the Soviets in Afghanistan?


12 posted on 11/18/2020 11:43:22 AM PST by ryderann
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To: brownsfan

Believe what you will.


13 posted on 11/18/2020 11:44:44 AM PST by conservativepoet
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To: conservativepoet

Boom.
https://twitter.com/HuberHammerQ_/status/1329124041257574408

[OnReady]
@HuberHammerQ_

Ezra Cohen-Watnick just delivered a speech regarding the move to place civilian SpecOps directly underneath the Acting Sec of Defense. Listen closely.

1000 pieces.


14 posted on 11/18/2020 11:44:56 AM PST by maggief
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To: maggief

Thank you.


15 posted on 11/18/2020 11:45:54 AM PST by conservativepoet
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To: noiseman

Joey would surrender without a shot fired.


16 posted on 11/18/2020 11:46:17 AM PST by wally_bert (I cannot be sure for certain, but in my personal opinion I am certain that I am not sure.)
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To: Kaslin

“Terrorists will take over!!!”

So. What. I don’t give a crap. 19 years in that hellhole.

“But then some will come here, and blow up stuff!!!”

Let them. We’ll be forced to bring back better screening, instead of pretending all cultures and religions are equal.


17 posted on 11/18/2020 11:47:51 AM PST by Basket_of_Deplorables (This is all a Soros funded communist insurrection! )
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To: Basket_of_Deplorables

Bring them home!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


18 posted on 11/18/2020 11:48:42 AM PST by angcat (THANK YOU LORD FOR PRESIDENT TRUMP!!!!!)
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To: Kaslin

Yep. They don’t give a crap whether we are there or not. Once we leave they will go right back to their barbaric ways without a thought.


19 posted on 11/18/2020 11:52:48 AM PST by rfreedom4u (The root word of vigilante is vigilant!)
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To: Captainpaintball

Salt the poppy fields!


20 posted on 11/18/2020 11:53:17 AM PST by rfreedom4u (The root word of vigilante is vigilant!)
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