America failed 38 million Afghans. In two days of hearings about that failure, Washington failed 331 million Americans.
To be exact, Washington failed us three times over. Here’s how.
Failure #1. The president failed us. President Biden made terrible decisions and then lied about them. He thought he could run away from the mess in Afghanistan and not pay a price. He figured the US could get out before Afghanistan collapsed. He assumed Americans didn’t care about Afghanistan. He thought he could handle the problems left behind after America left. He figured wrong on all counts.
The most visible and egregious of Biden’s shortfalls proved to be the series of decisions he personally made on how to conduct the withdrawal. These decisions endangered Americans and allies, abandoned the people of Afghanistan, and led to a chaotic, humiliating retreat that cost the lives of hundreds,including 13 U.S. military personnel.
Biden then lied repeatedly to the American people about his responsibility for these failures. In particular, the hearings reaffirmed that senior military leaders advised that the president should have maintained a small military presence in Afghanistan. This makes the president’s statement to ABC News journalist George Stephanopoulos — that no military leader had advised him to keep a presence in Afghanistan — untruthful. It’
The Biden administration is more addicted to lying and excuse-making than junkie is to drugs. His method of operation remains the same: lie, makes excuses, and hold out till the news cycle moves on. This may work for the White House, but does little to mitigate concerns that America is led by president chaos.
Failure #2. Senior military leaders failed us. The hearings actually produced very little insight into how and what decisions were made. Only under incessant questioning did senior military leaders acknowledge the untruths that the White House has been spinning for weeks.
For example, the evacuation was anything but an unqualified success. Joint Chiefs Chairman General Mark Milley backtracked a bit, describing the operations as a “logistical success,” but a “strategic failure.” Even that comment makes Pinocchio look like the high apostle of probity. Thirteen service members and hundreds of Afghans died. Some planes flew out half-empty. Inside the airport, chaos reigned. Americans and allies were left behind. This was anything but the Berlin Airlift — which, by the way, is an actual example of a real strategic and logistical success.
In their answers to Congress, officials and military leaders still twisted themselves in knots trying to give political cover for political leaders who made political failures. Yet the job of senior military officers is not to defend White House talking points. Their job is to render the best military advice, follow lawful orders, and command the troops underneath them with honor and competence. The current crop of senior officers in the Pentagon seem incapable of exercising these responsibilities.
Failure #3. Congress failed us. Yes, there was bipartisan disgust at the American failure and embarrassment in Afghanistan, but the finger-pointing about who was at fault was very partisan.Republicans wanted to blame Biden. Democrats wanted to blame anybody else. What these hearings did not accomplish was clearly connecting the dots of who did what, based on what information, what the consequences were, and where we are now.
Even the testimony that made headlines really didn’t tell us anything new. We learned for example there is now an elevated terrorist threat. Not exactly new news. We also heard the U.S. lacks the capacity to deal with these new threats. Again, not new news.
It is unlikely that such partisan hearing are ever going to deliver the transparency and facts to the American people or enable them to really understand what happened, why it’s important, and where we go from here. None of the answers to these questions are likely to come without an independent inquiry.
With Washington 0-for-3, the logical question is what’s next? If this were football, the coach would be fired, and there would be a shake-up in the starting line-up. What is likely to happen here is that the White House will move on. Congress will give up. The generals will keep their jobs.
We as Americans don’t have to stand for this nonsense. But nothing will change unless we start paying attention and demanding better.
A Heritage Foundation vice president, James Jay Carafano directs the think tank’s research program in matters of national security and foreign affairs.

John Klotsko
October 4, 2021 at 7:16 am
Well said Jay. What a disgrace of leadership. Milley needs to reread Dereliction of Duty, and then resign. He personally ruined the respect the general public had for the military. It will take years to rebuild that general public trust. Any officer who appears politically biased losses all sense of trust and confidence to do their duty (provide objective military advice). Also, the CSM needs to have a third party tape test Milley using Army weight standards.
Bob Watson
October 4, 2021 at 7:22 am
The grammar alone in this piece led me to believe it was fake-news from a Russian (or similar) source. “…is more addicted to lying and excuse-making than junkie is to drugs” and “hold out till the news cycle moves on…” Till? That means something different. Since, however, this was written by an old and respected acquaintance, LTC (Redleg) Carafano, I’ll assume it was written hastily and in anger.
LOVE LEGER
October 4, 2021 at 8:10 am
Mr. Carafano expresses a bunch of truism without factual supports. Afghanistan was never ours and neither is the rest of the world. Our great America is not welcome anywhere not even in Israel. This is the case not because of America itself but because of the arrogance displayed in this author thinking. Is Afghanistan better off now for its people today under Taliban versus under American occupation with Ghani? Reflect a little bit, when was the last time there was terrorist suicide bombing in Afghanistan recently? No. This is because most of the bombing and killing were being done by Arab Suicide bombers with American drone strike retaliations. This is why the identity of the suicide bombers were never released. These suicide bombers are now supposed to be ISIS-Khorasan.
And with all the hoopla about women right, Afghan women except a minority metropolitans in Kabul did not favor a Western lifestyle for themselves and for other Afghan women. And it makes sense, a poor nation who barely can afford sanitation cannot afford to have its society centered around hair salon and make up when they can barely feed themselves. After all, where would they get medical service to manage unwanted pregnancies? Withdrawing from Afghanistan was the right decision. People like Carafano like to pretend that the entire existence of Afghanistan is 9/11 without mentioning that Arab Osama Bin Laden was an explant from Saudi Arabia and that Mullah Omar himself never called for war against US until the US invasion. The Taliban was/is horrible but the Taliban is not the international terrorism that stemmed from the US and Israel conflicts in the Middle East. But the analysis of most commentators are so shallow. It grouped together people who are fighting Americanism/Colonialism/ Paternalism into one group. The war in Afghanistan stop being about Al Qaeda since the death of Bin Laden if not even earlier when the US randomly choose invade Iraq as the weaker the I’s in the Middle East. Most of the conflicts America has entangled itself in was/is about the ability of western countries to further colonize countries in the Middle to control energy supplies under new headlines. From Syria, Libya, Yemen, Lebanon, Iraq and Iran, none has anything to do with Al Qaeda or the Taliban.
MIKE GUILLOT
October 4, 2021 at 8:15 am
JJ, it’s not that simple! The US gave the Afghans A CHANCE, not a guarantee! The Afghani’s squandered it. The US must learn that changing culture, humanely, takes about 100 years. Otherwise, it takes complete defeat and emasculation of the respective society. Both methods are in the “too hard to do” category. Better we refrain from trying to change culture (aka nation building) and simply retaliate against those who would do us harm. Our enemies must know the US would rather be feared than respected. We should not issue idle threats–we should make promises!
Larry Stewart
October 4, 2021 at 1:19 pm
Excellent observations. Reminds me of Benghazi. An administration in power is never responsible for mistakes and/or misjudgments.
A good man once said “There is nothing more dangerous than than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity. If this be a fact, our nation has problems which will exploited by domestic and foreign adversaries