Staffers inside Joe Biden's administration are 'horrified' with the Afghanistan withdrawal, do not view the mission as a success and are disgusted American citizens were left on the ground.
'I am absolutely appalled and literally horrified we left Americans there,' one administration official told Politico on Tuesday. 'It was a hostage rescue of thousands of Americans in the guise of a NEO, and we have failed that no-fail mission.'
An NEO is a noncombatant evacuation operation. Another White House official told Politico that the mission cannot be labeled as accomplished if Americans are left behind.
The fury from inside administration was reported as Republicans tore into the president over his call with ex-Afghanistan President Ghani that shows he knew the local army was collapsing and polls showed his approval ratings slipping further.
There are still American citizens trying to get out of Kabul, thousands of Afghan allies have been left behind and the Taliban have been openly flaunting the weapons the US left behind.
On Tuesday night the president declared the total troop withdrawal from Afghanistan an 'extraordinary success,' despite widespread criticism over Biden's handling of the situation over the last month.
'I give you my word with all of my heart, I believe this is the right decision, the wise decision, and the best decision for America,' Biden said in Tuesday remarks – the first after the last U.S. soldier left Kabul on Monday afternoon.
He made these claims despite the withdrawal leading to the deaths of 13 U.S. service members on Thursday after a ISIS-K suicide bomber detonated their vest outside the Kabul airport.
'I am absolutely appalled and literally horrified we left Americans there,' one administration said. 'It was a hostage rescue of thousands of Americans... and we have failed that no-fail mission'
Biden admitted that he is to blame for the deaths – as well as all the events surrounding the withdrawal.
In his openly defiant remarks, however, the president said the operation in Afghanistan couldn't have been completed in a 'more orderly manner'. He specifically doubled-down on critics that claim he should have started the evacuation sooner, claiming he 'respectfully disagrees' with them.
The president has repeatedly reiterated over the last month his dedication to his decision to withdraw all U.S. forces from Afghanistan by the August 31 deadline, claiming he didn't want to pass along the two-decade-long war onto a fifth president.
'This decision about Afghanistan is not just about Afghanistan. It's about ending an era of major military operations to remake other countries,' Biden said on Tuesday.
Republicans and Democrats alike have expressed their opposition to Biden's handling of the troop pull out, especially after at least 100 American citizens were left behind so the president could keep his commitment to the Taliban to be out by the end of August.
Polls have shown that American voters are also turning against the president as his approval rating dropped to an all time low of 47 per cent in the last week.
A Morning Consult/Politico poll released Wednesday shows only three in 10 registered voters approve of the way Biden handled the withdrawal from Afghanistan, while a whopping 61 per cent disapprove of the execution of ending the war.
Families of the fallen U.S. service members were left disappointed by Joe Biden at the dignified transfer on Sunday. One sister of a fallen Marine yelled at the president: 'I hope you burn in hell! That was my brother!'
During the remarks on Tuesday marking the end of the war in Afghanistan, Biden did not take questions from reporters.
'The fundamental obligation of a President is to defend America,' he said Tuesday. 'Not against the threats of 2001, but against the threats of 2021 and tomorrow.'
'I do not believe the safety and security of America is enhanced by continuing to deploy thousands of American troops in Afghanistan.'
In the remarks, Biden appeared to have little sympathy for the fact Americans were left behind as he lauded being able to get 120,000 people evacuated.
Of the 100 or so Americans who didn't get evacuated, Biden said they were given 'multiple warnings and offers to help them leave Afghanistan, all the way back as far as March.'
He said they were given at least 19 warnings and dismissed the tragedy by claiming most of those left behind were dual citizens anyway.
On Wednesday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell threw cold water on growing Republican calls to impeach Biden, by saying there wasn't going to be an investigation.
McConnell, who also sought to douse impeachment efforts in the Senate against President Donald Trump (there were two of them) spoke as a number of House Freedom Caucus members have demanded Biden's impeachment following the chaotic pullout from Afghanistan after the all of the U.S.-backed government.
But McConnell said the effort would be futile.
'Well, look the president is not going to be removed from office,' he said Tuesday.
'I think the way these behaviors get adjusted in this country is at the ballot box,' he said, the Wall Street Journal reported. 'There isn't going to be an impeachment.'
His comments have come as House Republicans have been lining up to call for Biden's impeachment – although their efforts are likely doomed in the Democratic-controlled House and would face difficult odds in the 50-50 Senate.
'IF BIDEN REFUSES TO RESIGN, HE MUST BE IMPEACHED!' Tweeted Rep. Jody Hice (R-Ga.) on August 30th, as the US pulled out its last troops from Afghanistan.
Rep. Lauren Boebert on Tuesday called for not only impeaching Biden, but also Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken. She also wants to execute a parliamentary move to remove House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
McConnell used similar language to try to weigh in against an ultimately failed impeachment effort in late 2019 – focusing on the low odds of success.
'The case is so darn weak coming from the House, he told Sean Hannity of Fox News. 'We know how it's going to end. There's no chance the president's going to be removed from office.'
Taliban forces patrol at a runway a day after U.S troops withdrawal from Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan August 31, 2021
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