BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images
Eleven days after President Joe Biden announced he was withdrawing American troops from Afghanistan in what turned out to be a disastrous and humiliating move for the United States, Vice President Kamala Harris smugly acknowledged she was “the last person in the room” when Biden made his decision.
On April 14, 2021, Biden announced, “The United States will begin our final withdrawal — begin it on May 1 of this year.” Then he added, “We will not conduct a hasty rush to the exit. We’ll do it — we’ll do it responsibly, deliberately, and safely. … And the Taliban should know that if they attack us as we draw down, we will defend ourselves and our partners with all the tools at our disposal.”
Retired Gen. Austin Miller, the former top U.S. military commander in Afghanistan, had warned the Biden administration that Afghanistan would get “very bad, very fast” when American troops began to leave. The chaotic withdrawal contributed to the deaths of 13 U.S. service members in a terror attack outside of Kabul’s Hamid Karzai International Airport.
Miller told committee investigators that he was bothered by the White House’s “lack of understanding of the risk” that he attempted to impart, according to The Washington Post.
On April 25, 2021, Harris was interviewed by CNN’s Dana Bash, who began, “President Biden always said that he wants you to be the last person in the room — ”
“Yes,” Harris interjected.
“ — particularly for big decisions, just as he was for President Obama,” Bash finished.
“Yes,” Harris agreed.
“He just made a really big decision, Afghanistan,” Bash pointed out.
“Yes,” Harris replied.
“Were you the last person in the room?” Bash asked.
“Yes,” Harris answered.
“And you feel comfortable?” Bash pressed.
“I do,” Harris said. “And I’m going to add to that. This is a president who has an extraordinary amount of courage.”
THROWBACK: Kamala says she was the last person in the room and was a major part in the decision to pull out of Afghanistan which led to the disastrous withdrawal where 13 servicemembers were kiIIed.
This is on Kamala. pic.twitter.com/2894fFmHNo
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) July 26, 2024
On July 8, 2021, Biden followed up by stating, “When I announced our drawdown in April, I said we would be out by September, and we’re on track to meet that target. Our military mission in Afghanistan will conclude on August 31. The drawdown is proceeding in a secure and orderly way, prioritizing the safety of our troops as they depart.”
Tim Pearce contributed to this article.
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