President Joe Biden thinks that “nobody made a mistake” during the United States’ 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan which concluded in 13 American military personnel dying from a terrorist attack in Kabul, according to a new book.
Following the conclusion of the United States’ withdrawal from Afghanistan, Biden and his administration faced backlash for the botched operation. The Gold Star families have repeatedly called for Biden to resign, criticizing the withdrawal. But despite the backlash, no one reportedly offered to resign as Biden told his aides that he stood by them, Politico’s Alexander Ward writes in “The Internationalists: The Fight to Restore Foreign Policy After Trump,” which was obtained early by Axios. (RELATED: Biden Quietly Releases Late-Night Statement On Afghanistan Withdrawal Anniversary)
After the withdrawal “no one offered to resign, in large part because the president didn’t believe anyone had made a mistake. Ending the war was always going to be messy,” Ward claims.
“Biden told his top aides, [National Security Advisor Jake] Sullivan included, that he stood by them and they had done their best during a tough situation,” the book continues.
DULLES, VIRGINIA – AUGUST 31: Refugees walk through the departure terminal to a bus at Dulles International Airport after being evacuated from Kabul following the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan on August 31, 2021 in Dulles, Virginia. The Department of Defense announced yesterday that the U.S. military had completed its withdrawal from Afghanistan, ending 20 years of war. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Throughout the operation, aides watched as Biden made promises they reportedly knew the administration wouldn’t be able to keep, Axios says Ward wrote. After Biden promised that U.S. troops would stay in Afghanistan until every willing U.S. citizen was evacuated, aides reportedly felt the promise couldn’t be kept, Ward writes.
“There’s no one here who thinks we can meet that promise,” a senior White House official told Ward after Biden’s remarks.
U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the U.S. military’s ongoing evacuation efforts in Afghanistan as he is joined by (L-R) U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan from the East Room of the White House on August 20, 2021 in Washington, DC.(Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
After the withdrawal concluded, the Biden administration internally reviewed its operation in April 2023. The report put the blame on former President Donald Trump for ordering communication with the Taliban, failing to leave the Biden administration a comprehensive plan on how the operation should be carried out and for negotiating a withdrawal date.
White House national security council spokesman John Kirby said in April 2023 that the president was “proud” of how the administration conducted the withdrawal.
Biden “exploded in frustration” after learning that Afghanistan was on the brink of collapse while he vacationed at Camp David in Aug. 2021, a previous book about the White House claimed. Ahead of the withdrawal, several Biden administration staffers went on vacation including Secretary of State Antony Blinken and then White House press secretary Jen Psaki, Franklin Foer detailed in his book, “The Last Politician: Inside Joe Biden’s White House and the Struggle for America’s Future.”
“Give me a break,” Biden exclaimed, according to Foer.