Trump's Political Strategy: Shifting Blame for Afghanistan to Harris

[Social Media]

 

Former President Donald Trump has adopted a new campaign strategy, aiming to shift the blame for the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan onto Vice President Kamala Harris. This tactic targets Harris as a scapegoat for the failures surrounding the withdrawal, an event that marked the end of America’s longest war but also left a dark mark on President Joe Biden’s term.

 

The Afghanistan exit remains a contentious issue between Republicans and Democrats, who continue to trade blame over which administration should be held accountable for the lack of planning and execution of the drawdown of U.S. troops after 20 years of military operations. The withdrawal culminated in the collapse of the U.S.-backed Afghan government as the Taliban regained control of Kabul in August 2021. The U.S. exit was marred by chaotic scenes at Kabul airport, a devastating terrorist attack that killed 13 U.S. soldiers, and a humanitarian crisis that endangered thousands of Afghan allies and other vulnerable individuals.

 

The Trump campaign has sought to distance itself from these events by drawing attention to an April 2021 interview with Vice President Harris. In this interview, she mentioned that she was the last person in the room with President Biden when he made the decision to withdraw from Afghanistan and that she was "comfortable" with the decision. Chris Tuttle, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, called it "a perfect political attack," noting, "I think the campaign feels like it’s a good time to remind the general public of what happened and the chaos that ensued as a good line of attack."

 

However, critics of Trump, including Democrats, highlight his decision to bypass the Afghan government and negotiate directly with the Taliban to set a specific timeline for the U.S. troop withdrawal. They argue that this move left the Biden administration with few viable options when it came to developing and executing a withdrawal strategy. A former senior officer who served in Afghanistan described the withdrawal as "a catastrophe, across the board, a civil, military, right down to tactical, catastrophe," and accused Trump of trying to "bathe in the blood of those 13 troops."

 

Yet, as Tuttle pointed out, the complexities of this situation often fail to engage the public in an election season. "When it comes down to a political campaign, if you’re explaining, you’re losing," he said, underscoring the difficulty for Biden and Harris to recover from the negative optics of the withdrawal.

 

Trump and his supporters have attempted to frame him as a strong leader who deters violence through assertive rhetoric and decisive action, contrasting this with his history of disparaging remarks about the military, wounded soldiers, and those killed in action. As part of this narrative, the Trump campaign organized a call with family members of three U.S. service members killed in the Abbey Gate bombing on the third anniversary of the attack. Trump also joined other Gold Star families at a wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery.

 

Meanwhile, Republicans and some families of fallen soldiers have criticized Harris and Biden for what they perceive as a lack of proper acknowledgment for the soldiers' sacrifices. Cheryl Juels, whose niece, Marine Corps Sgt. Nicole Gee, was killed in Kabul, expressed her belief that "With Trump, we knew our kids were safe." She added that Trump, as a New Yorker, "wasn’t going to deal with anybody hurting our men and women, or he would have, you know, made ’em pay for it."

Mark Schmitz, the father of Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Jared Schmitz, who was also killed in the Abbey Gate bombing, criticized the Biden-Harris administration for avoiding accountability. "I think that this [Biden] administration has shown that they’ve treated the withdrawal from Afghanistan like the plague," he said.

 

In contrast to Trump's public engagement, Biden and Harris issued separate statements to honor the 13 soldiers killed, as well as the 2,461 who died and the 20,744 wounded over the course of the 20-year war. When asked why neither Biden nor Harris hosted or attended any public events to honor the fallen soldiers, White House national security communications adviser John Kirby said that the administration was focused on working behind the scenes. "There are many ways that we as a nation and our leaders can observe the third anniversary of Abbey Gate," Kirby said, emphasizing the quiet, ongoing efforts to support the families of the fallen.

 

It remains unclear whether Trump’s strategy of positioning himself as a strong, decisive leader on foreign policy will resonate with undecided voters. While some former aides have expressed concerns about his tendency to be easily manipulated and enamored with autocrats, Trump’s supporters argue that he can still make sound decisions that disrupt the status quo. On CBS’s "Face The Nation," Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, who served as Trump’s national security adviser, commented on Trump's decision-making process: "He can make really sound decisions and disrupt things that need to be disrupted in terms of foreign policy and national security, but oftentimes struggles to hang on to those decisions and see them through."

 

Despite Trump’s efforts, Harris has been gaining ground in polls against him. While foreign policy typically falls behind other key issues like the economy, immigration, and reproductive rights, voters still consider how the U.S. should position itself on the global stage. According to polling by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, a majority of Americans favor strengthening or expanding U.S. alliances abroad. However, Trump supporters are more inclined to believe that the U.S. should prioritize its national interests, even when allies disagree, as shown in April polling by the Pew Research Center.

 

Allison Jaslow, a veteran of the Iraq War and CEO of the nonprofit Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), downplayed Trump’s attacks on Harris over the Afghanistan withdrawal. "I have to think that the attack falls flat on many people," she said. "I just don’t think that you can fully shift blame onto another administration when you yourself share a portion of blame for how things were executed in Afghanistan."

 

IAVA, which represents around 425,000 members, continues to monitor how candidates discuss their future policies. The organization advocates for a repeal or reform of the 2001 and 2002 Authorizations for Use of Military Force (AUMF), which allowed for U.S. military engagement in Afghanistan and Iraq and are still used for ongoing counter-terrorism operations. Jaslow emphasized the need for candidates to demonstrate a commitment to reconsidering these authorizations and highlighted the importance of addressing the needs of Afghan allies left behind in the withdrawal. "We still owe it to our Afghan allies, the interpreters and other folks who helped us on the ground, to help them find safe harbor," she said, adding that failing to do so could complicate America's ability to engage effectively in future conflicts.

 

As the political landscape continues to evolve, Trump's efforts to rewrite the narrative on Afghanistan will be scrutinized by both his supporters and critics. Whether this strategy will effectively bolster his position remains to be seen, but it undoubtedly adds another layer of complexity to the upcoming election.

 

Credit: The Hill 2024-08-30

 

 

 

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[spidermike007]

What a lot of Trump supporters don't seem to understand is that he had an opportunity to negotiate directly with the Afghan government, and instead he sidetracked them and decided to negotiate directly with the Taliban. That was treasonous. 

 

And that was a very poor decision, which flew in the face of his pretending to have respect for the Armed Forces. His disparaging of John McCain is one of many examples. There is a reason why so many in the armed forces, along with their leadership, dislike and mistrust him. He is a coward and a pretender. Arlington is just another blatant example of his extreme lack of sincerity. It was a photo op, that failed miserably. 

 

Trump negotiated the withdrawal. Biden should have postponed it long enough to get out all the translators we promised loyalty to, in addition to most of the billions in equipment and supplies. They both failed, on that count. 

[thaipo7]

7 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

What a lot of Trump supporters don't seem to understand is that he had an opportunity to negotiate directly with the Afghan government, and instead he sidetracked them and decided to negotiate directly with the Taliban. That was treasonous. 

 

And that was a very poor decision, which flew in the face of his pretending to have respect for the Armed Forces. His disparaging of John McCain is one of many examples. There is a reason why so many in the armed forces, along with their leadership, dislike and mistrust him. He is a coward and a pretender. Arlington is just another blatant example of his extreme lack of sincerity. It was a photo op, that failed miserably. 

 

Trump negotiated the withdrawal. Biden should have postponed it long enough to get out all the translators we promised loyalty to, in addition to most of the billions in equipment and supplies. They both failed, on that count. 

You are so sure in your opinions.  You may be in for a great surprise.  Trump did not pull out of Bagram AB BEFORE removing equipment and US Citizens.  It was the orders of the two biggest losers ever as far as foreign affairs go.  Biden and Blinken.  Then add in Sullivan.  General Miley and Austin should have been fired but no one get fired in the Administration.  We lost our eyes and ears on keeping an eye on Afghanistan, China, and Russia.  How many US citizens have been killed since the Insurrection.  Yes, this was a real Insurrection.  Not J6.  

[thaibeachlovers]

12 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

What a lot of Trump supporters don't seem to understand is that he had an opportunity to negotiate directly with the Afghan government, and instead he sidetracked them and decided to negotiate directly with the Taliban. That was treasonous. 

 

And that was a very poor decision, which flew in the face of his pretending to have respect for the Armed Forces. His disparaging of John McCain is one of many examples. There is a reason why so many in the armed forces, along with their leadership, dislike and mistrust him. He is a coward and a pretender. Arlington is just another blatant example of his extreme lack of sincerity. It was a photo op, that failed miserably. 

 

Trump negotiated the withdrawal. Biden should have postponed it long enough to get out all the translators we promised loyalty to, in addition to most of the billions in equipment and supplies. They both failed, on that count. 

You tell a good tale.

 

IMO Trump had the sense to realise the real power in Afghanistan was the Taliban. Talking to the government would have been a waste of time.

 

Biden had more than enough time to renegotiate the terms of the withdrawal and chose not to. He had no problem cancelling Trump's agreement with Mexico.

 

Still, I know that you will keep making excuses for Biden's catastrophe.

[thaibeachlovers]

18 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

Trump negotiated the withdrawal. Biden should have postponed it long enough to get out all the translators we promised loyalty to, in addition to most of the billions in equipment and supplies.

Is it your contention that Biden did not postpone the withdrawal? LOL.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2020–2021_U.S._troop_withdrawal_from_Afghanistan

The Trump Administration's decision in February 2020 was to begin the withdrawal on 1 May 2021, but the final pull-out of all US troops was delayed by the Biden Administration until September 2021, triggering the start of the collapse of the ANSF.[9] This collapse led to the Taliban takeover of Kabul on 15 August 2021.

[Tug]

18 minutes ago, thaipo7 said:

You are so sure in your opinions.  You may be in for a great surprise.  Trump did not pull out of Bagram AB BEFORE removing equipment and US Citizens.  It was the orders of the two biggest losers ever as far as foreign affairs go.  Biden and Blinken.  Then add in Sullivan.  General Miley and Austin should have been fired but no one get fired in the Administration.  We lost our eyes and ears on keeping an eye on Afghanistan, China, and Russia.  How many US citizens have been killed since the Insurrection.  Yes, this was a real Insurrection.  Not J6.  

Trump negotiated with the taliban without the afghan government .he released 4,000 taliban terrorists lose in the country allowing them time to arm and organize for their eventual takeover .trump DID that !he poisoned the well so to speak and left the next administration to deal with his mess .trump did NOT act in the best interests of the United States nor the afghan people.the afghan government was left with the means to defend its self they failed.to bad ……Harris didn’t dirty trumps diaper he dit that all buy himself.

[spidermike007]

55 minutes ago, Tug said:

Trump negotiated with the taliban without the afghan government .he released 4,000 taliban terrorists lose in the country allowing them time to arm and organize for their eventual takeover .trump DID that !he poisoned the well so to speak and left the next administration to deal with his mess .trump did NOT act in the best interests of the United States nor the afghan people.the afghan government was left with the means to defend its self they failed.to bad ……Harris didn’t dirty trumps diaper he dit that all buy himself.

Thank you. Trump rarely acts in the best interests of the people he pretends to represent. 

[OneManShow]

4 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

What a lot of Trump supporters don't seem to understand is that he had an opportunity to negotiate directly with the Afghan government, and instead he sidetracked them and decided to negotiate directly with the Taliban. That was treasonous. 

Presidents are not decision makers, especially regarding long term international policies. 

[JonnyF]

Trump is reaching on this one.

 

Nobody listens to Harris...

[Eric Loh]

The Arlington debacle has overshadowed the Afghanistan withdrawal.

 

Own goal by Trump.  

[frank83628]

4 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

What a lot of Trump supporters don't seem to understand is that he had an opportunity to negotiate directly with the Afghan government, and instead he sidetracked them and decided to negotiate directly with the Taliban. That was treasonous. 

 

And that was a very poor decision, which flew in the face of his pretending to have respect for the Armed Forces. His disparaging of John McCain is one of many examples. There is a reason why so many in the armed forces, along with their leadership, dislike and mistrust him. He is a coward and a pretender. Arlington is just another blatant example of his extreme lack of sincerity. It was a photo op, that failed miserably. 

 

Trump negotiated the withdrawal. Biden should have postponed it long enough to get out all the translators we promised loyalty to, in addition to most of the billions in equipment and supplies. They both failed, on that count. 

so if it was such a bad idea by Trump and the fact the Dems oppose everything Trump said or did, why then did they not postpone it.? 

 

it falls on their hands however you move the goal posts.

[Lacessit]

3 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

Thank you. Trump rarely acts in the best interests of the people he pretends to represent. 

He calls them basement dwellers.

[Lacessit]

4 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

You tell a good tale.

 

IMO Trump had the sense to realise the real power in Afghanistan was the Taliban. Talking to the government would have been a waste of time.

 

Biden had more than enough time to renegotiate the terms of the withdrawal and chose not to. He had no problem cancelling Trump's agreement with Mexico.

 

Still, I know that you will keep making excuses for Biden's catastrophe.

Just as I know you will keep making excuses for a felon, racist, misogynist and grifter. He's your kind of guy.

[mdr224]

2 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

Just as I know you will keep making excuses for a felon, racist, misogynist and grifter. He's your kind of guy.

Arent you british? Stop spending your time trying to turn our country into yours

[Lacessit]

4 minutes ago, mdr224 said:

Arent you british? Stop spending your time trying to turn our country into yours

I am not British, and I spend my time as I see fit. Posters on ASEAN don't get to tell me what to do.

[hotandsticky]

7 minutes ago, mdr224 said:

Aren't you British? Stop spending your time trying to turn our country into yours

 

 

He obviously thought that you needed as much outside help as possible, in view of the Clusterf@ck you are currently experiencing.

 

 

 

Was he wrong?

[nauseus]

49 minutes ago, Eric Loh said:

The Arlington debacle has overshadowed the Afghanistan withdrawal.

 

Own goal by Trump.  

 

What debacle?

[mdr224]

13 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

I am not British, and I spend my time as I see fit. Posters on ASEAN don't get to tell me what to do.

Well regardless youre not american so your opinion matters not

[nauseus]

14 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

I am not British, and I spend my time as I see fit. Posters on ASEAN don't get to tell me what to do.

ggrrrr

[riclag]

She was the last person in the room with biden!
 

She’s good for Social warrior causes like supporting Blm,  but she’s a nobody on foreign affairs and country’s borders. Imop

 

https://www.foxnews.com/media/harris-last-person-room-video-viral-3rd-anniversary-deadly-afghanistan-attack

[riclag]

56 minutes ago, mdr224 said:

Arent you british? Stop spending your time trying to turn our country into yours

Brilliantly scrutinized 

 

[watthong]

1 hour ago, Eric Loh said:

The Arlington debacle has overshadowed the Afghanistan withdrawal.

 

Own goal by Trump.  

 

And even that, like everything else from now till November, is overshadowed by Trump melt-down over watching his campaign going down in flames. while Harris/Walz rising. Goal by Biden.

 

(While Shady Vance is still honing his un-diplomatic skills in a donut shop somewhere...

Vance, all smiling: "Hi, I'm JD Vance running for VP, nice to see ya!"

Employee, all not-smiling: "Ok." (muttering under her breath: Now get that damn camera out of my fvcking face!)

 

and Trump is overdosing on hi blood pressure pills, slowly but surely slipping into irrelevance)  MAGA fans are simply raking over the ashes. Back and forth, back and forth. The networkl should rename the Oct Debate the Oct "Coup de Grace."

[spidermike007]

8 minutes ago, watthong said:

 

And even that, like everything else from now till November, is overshadowed by Trump melt-down over watching his campaign going down in flames. while Harris/Walz rising. Goal by Biden.

 

(While Shady Vance is still honing his un-diplomatic skills in a donut shop somewhere...

Vance, all smiling: "Hi, I'm JD Vance running for VP, nice to see ya!"

Employee, all not-smiling: "Ok." (muttering under her breath: Now get that damn camera out of my fvcking face!)

 

and Trump is overdosing on hi blood pressure pills, slowly but surely slipping into irrelevance)  MAGA fans are simply raking over the ashes. Back and forth, back and forth. The networkl should rename the Oct Debate the Oct "Coup de Grace."

Did you see the video of that donut shop visit? I assume that was intended to generate positive PR. It ended up being one of the most awkward and uncomfortable two minute videos I've ever seen. Vance literally does not know how to behave like a normal human being, he is that scripted, he is that manufactured, he is that fake and phony. 

 

He is easily the worst VP pick since Dan Quayle. 

[spidermike007]

1 hour ago, frank83628 said:

so if it was such a bad idea by Trump and the fact the Dems oppose everything Trump said or did, why then did they not postpone it.? 

 

it falls on their hands however you move the goal posts.

If you're willing to bother to read history they did postpone it, however they did not postpone it long enough. 

[frank83628]

5 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

If you're willing to bother to read history they did postpone it, however they did not postpone it long enough. 

well, that is on them, not Trump!

[Walker88]

Lots of never served losers like their messiah offering criticism of the withdrawal...

 

Okay, experts...how would you have withdrawn from a pointless 20 year war initiated by Bush II and advised AGAINST by the CIA? Do any of you have any idea what removing 20 years worth of equipment entails?

 

How many service people and contractors would have been killed if the withdrawal had taken months or even a year or more? Anybody think the Taliban would sit idly and just watch everyone go home?

 

The former President ordered the release of 5000 Taliban jihadis from prison. Many of them now run the government, and it is quite possible among them were the folks who orchestrated and carried out the airport attack.

[Hanaguma]

12 minutes ago, Walker88 said:

Lots of never served losers like their messiah offering criticism of the withdrawal...

 

Okay, experts...how would you have withdrawn from a pointless 20 year war initiated by Bush II and advised AGAINST by the CIA? Do any of you have any idea what removing 20 years worth of equipment entails?

 

How many service people and contractors would have been killed if the withdrawal had taken months or even a year or more? Anybody think the Taliban would sit idly and just watch everyone go home?

 

The former President ordered the release of 5000 Taliban jihadis from prison. Many of them now run the government, and it is quite possible among them were the folks who orchestrated and carried out the airport attack.

For one thing, don't do the withdrawl during the 'fighting season' just to look good and have a convenient anniversary date. Wait until winter. 

 

For another, don't abandon billions of dollars of military hardware for your erstwhile enemy to use. Including more than 10,000 Humvees and 300,000 personal weapons. 

 

Casualties? There had been zero deaths in 2021 up until the pull out. In 2020 there were 11.  So waiting and phasing the withdrawl to coincide with better timing would have been the smart play. 

[Yellowtail]

2 hours ago, Eric Loh said:

The Arlington debacle has overshadowed the Afghanistan withdrawal.

 

Own goal by Trump.  

Right. The left is all bent out of shape about Trump attending the wreath-laying ceremony that honored service members killed in the Afghanistan withdrawal at Arlington. 

 

But they don't seem to give a whit about the thirteen servicemen that were killed as a result Biden-Harris incompetence in regard to the withdrawal.

 

Nor did the same media seem to care when Biden lied about the deaths. 

 

The MSM is has become nothing more than the propaganda wing of the Democrat party. 

[Yellowtail]

30 minutes ago, Walker88 said:

Lots of never served losers like their messiah offering criticism of the withdrawal...

 

Okay, experts...how would you have withdrawn from a pointless 20 year war initiated by Bush II and advised AGAINST by the CIA? Do any of you have any idea what removing 20 years worth of equipment entails?

 

How many service people and contractors would have been killed if the withdrawal had taken months or even a year or more? Anybody think the Taliban would sit idly and just watch everyone go home?

 

The former President ordered the release of 5000 Taliban jihadis from prison. Many of them now run the government, and it is quite possible among them were the folks who orchestrated and carried out the airport attack.

You mean the war that Obama describes as the "good war", that one?

 

[Yellowtail]

13 minutes ago, Hanaguma said:

For one thing, don't do the withdrawl during the 'fighting season' just to look good and have a convenient anniversary date. Wait until winter. 

 

For another, don't abandon billions of dollars of military hardware for your erstwhile enemy to use. Including more than 10,000 Humvees and 300,000 personal weapons. 

 

Casualties? There had been zero deaths in 2021 up until the pull out. In 2020 there were 11.  So waiting and phasing the withdrawl to coincide with better timing would have been the smart play. 

And as I understand it, Trump had been persuaded to maintain the base and the embassy.