Jan. 6 panel scrutinizes Trump's Afghanistan order post-election - The Washington Post

“He disregarded concerns astir the consequences for fragile governments connected the beforehand lines of the combat against [the Islamic State] and al-Qaeda terrorists,” Kinzinger said. “Knowing helium was leaving office, helium acted instantly and signed this bid connected November 11th, which would person required the contiguous withdrawal of troops from Somalia and Afghanistan, each to beryllium implicit earlier the Biden inauguration connected January 20th.”

Trump’s withdrawal bid was reported antecedently by Axios and in the publication “Peril,” by journalists Bob Woodward and Robert Costa. As portion of Thursday’s hearing, the committee played video and audio segments of the grounds provided implicit the past respective months by cardinal officials, including Army Gen. Mark A. Milley, president of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; retired Army Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, who served arsenic nationalist information advisor to Vice President Mike Pence; and John McEntee, an advisor to Trump.

The Afghanistan program was acceptable speech ultimately. Milley called the bid “odd” and “potentially dangerous,” telling the committee helium did not deliberation it was feasible oregon wise. Kellogg said that the proposition was “very contested,” and that carrying it retired would person been a “tremendous disservice to nation.”

“It’s the aforesaid happening with President Biden,” Kellogg said, comparing the concern to the chaotic and deadly withdrawal carried retired astatine Biden’s absorption successful August 2021. “It would person been a debacle.”

McEntee recalled typing up the bid to retreat from Afghanistan and securing Trump’s signature connected it. He did not connection an appraisal akin to Milley’s and Kellogg’s successful grounds aired Thursday.

Their comments adhd to nationalist knowing of cardinal subject moves that span the 2 presidencies, and the often erratic quality of deliberations nether Trump.

The Trump administration, successful February 2020, signed a woody with the Taliban agreeing to region each U.S. troops by outpouring 2021. It included a fistful of concessions, including that the Taliban would clasp occurrence against U.S. troops arsenic they departed. The Afghan authorities was chopped retired of those discussions.

Trump aboriginal undermined that agreement, tweeting successful October of that twelvemonth that each U.S. troops should beryllium “home by Christmas!” Then-Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper sent Trump a memo advising the president that ongoing Taliban attacks, imaginable information for remaining U.S. unit and risks to U.S. alliances made that timeline untenable.

Trump fired Esper connected Nov. 9, 1 time aft the predetermination loss, installing loyalists astatine the Pentagon astatine a infinitesimal erstwhile administrations typically question a creaseless modulation connected issues of nationalist security.

Biden decided successful April 2021 to travel done with the Afghanistan withdrawal, prompting the illness of the country’s authorities 4 months later. Biden medication officials blamed Trump, saying his woody with the Taliban near fewer alternatives, portion erstwhile Trump medication officials sought to region themselves from the statement by arguing it was meant to beryllium implemented lone if the conditions warranted.

Trump has criticized Biden for the haphazard exit, calling it a “humiliation” and “total surrender,” and claiming it would not person happened connected his watch.

“We could person gotten retired with honor,” Trump said astatine a rally past year. “We should person gotten retired with honor. And alternatively we got retired with the nonstop other of honor.”

Alyssa Farah Griffin, a erstwhile Trump medication authoritative who has go a predominant critic, tweeted Thursday that arsenic “someone who remains highly captious of Biden’s Afghanistan withdrawal,” she’d beryllium funny to perceive however Trump supporters support “Trump’s bid for an adjacent hastier withdrawal.”

Under Trump’s direction, hundreds of U.S. troops were withdrawn from Somalia successful the waning weeks of his administration. Some were redeployed to adjacent Kenya portion continuing to sojourn Somalia to counsel section troops battling al-Qaeda-affiliated militants.

In May, Biden reversed Trump’s Somalia order, deploying hundreds of U.S. troops there. Pentagon officials sought statesmanlike support to bash so, advising that it was becoming progressively unsustainable to lone look connected the crushed episodically to transportation retired operations. The Pentagon has carried retired a fistful of airstrikes successful Somalia since then.