Republicans Strive to Make Afghanistan a Central Issue in Election Cycle
In the meantime, the Harris campaign unveils a new advertisement that challenges Trump's capabilities in national security.
TroibNews 
Three years after the tumultuous U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, both Democrats and Republicans are engaging in a renewed battle over accountability for what happened, as they approach the November elections.
The debate over the "who messed up Afghanistan" narrative is taking center stage in Washington, manifested through congressional investigations, media appearances, and statements from campaign representatives.
Over the weekend, Republicans introduced a new investigation, strategically timed to coincide with former President Donald Trump’s campaign leading up to Tuesday’s debate. This investigation squarely places the responsibility for the U.S. exit from Afghanistan on President Joe Biden.
“The administration’s unconditional surrender and the abandonment of our Afghan allies, who fought alongside the U.S. military against the Taliban — their brothers in arms — is a stain on this administration,” remarked Rep. Michael McCaul, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, who spearheaded the investigation. “I will use every tool in my belt to compel both men to answer for the catastrophic failure of epic proportions their decisions caused.”
In response, a group of 10 former senior U.S. military commanders issued an open letter on Monday defending Harris’ foreign policy credentials. They criticized Trump for a “chaotic approach” to Afghanistan that “severely hindered” the Biden administration’s options for withdrawal when it took office. Trump had initially established a withdrawal deadline in 2021 as part of a deal with the Taliban, which also facilitated the release of 5,000 Taliban fighters from captivity. Although Biden criticized the agreement, he ultimately adhered to the full withdrawal plan after becoming president.
“We believed it was important to write this because we wanted to counter lies” propagated by the Trump campaign and Republican lawmakers about Afghanistan, stated Randy Manner, a retired U.S. Army general who signed the letter.
For Republicans, bringing the topic of the Afghanistan withdrawal back into public discourse is a strategic victory, as it emphasizes one of the most notable failures in American foreign policy that occurred during Biden's presidency, regardless of where the blame lies for the final stages of the conflict.
As Trump and Harris prepare to debate on Tuesday, the renewed focus on Afghanistan increases the likelihood that it will be a topic of discussion.
Republicans are intensifying their scrutiny of Harris’s involvement in the withdrawal. “The Afghanistan withdrawal will go down as one of the most embarrassing moments in American history, all thanks to Kamala's incompetence,” declared Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt.
On the flip side, Democrats contend that it was Trump who paved the way for the tumultuous withdrawal before leaving office. They assert that the Biden administration made the necessary decision to conclude a protracted conflict and redirect attention to more pressing threats such as Russia and China.
“Americans are no longer fighting and dying in Afghanistan, and we're now no longer spending tens of billions of dollars a month to fight a war that could not be won,” noted Rep. Jason Crow, a Colorado Democrat and veteran of both the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.
The State Department responded to McCaul’s report with a detailed rebuttal on Monday, accusing the Republican-led investigation of partisan bias, selective use of facts, and obscuring the truth with speculation.
“We will not stand by silently as the department and its workforce are used to further partisan agendas,” the department stated.
McCaul has been actively discussing the findings of his three-year investigation through interviews and news appearances, while Trump campaign representatives are still emphasizing the former president’s connections with Gold Star families of U.S. service members who lost their lives in Afghanistan, despite the recent controversy over his visit to Arlington National Cemetery.
The Harris campaign is countering Republican criticisms on national security through a new advertisement featuring high-ranking former Trump administration officials, including former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, asserting that he is unfit for the role of commander in chief.
Harris, however, must navigate the complexities of showcasing her significant involvement in foreign policy decisions over the past four years while avoiding backlash regarding the outcomes of some of those decisions. It remains uncertain whether she will confront Trump regarding his Afghanistan strategy during the debate or steer the conversation toward other foreign policy matters.
In preparation for the debate, the Harris campaign launched a new section on her website on Monday that details her foreign policy stances, emphasizing that she is “ready to be commander in chief on day one.”
This section refers to Harris’s roles concerning Russia, Ukraine, the Indo-Pacific, Israel and Gaza, and NATO, but notably omits any mention of Afghanistan.
A previous version of this article appeared in PMG's National Security Daily Newsletter. If you enjoy this content, consider signing up for it.
James del Carmen contributed to this report for TROIB News
The debate over the "who messed up Afghanistan" narrative is taking center stage in Washington, manifested through congressional investigations, media appearances, and statements from campaign representatives.
Over the weekend, Republicans introduced a new investigation, strategically timed to coincide with former President Donald Trump’s campaign leading up to Tuesday’s debate. This investigation squarely places the responsibility for the U.S. exit from Afghanistan on President Joe Biden.
“The administration’s unconditional surrender and the abandonment of our Afghan allies, who fought alongside the U.S. military against the Taliban — their brothers in arms — is a stain on this administration,” remarked Rep. Michael McCaul, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, who spearheaded the investigation. “I will use every tool in my belt to compel both men to answer for the catastrophic failure of epic proportions their decisions caused.”
In response, a group of 10 former senior U.S. military commanders issued an open letter on Monday defending Harris’ foreign policy credentials. They criticized Trump for a “chaotic approach” to Afghanistan that “severely hindered” the Biden administration’s options for withdrawal when it took office. Trump had initially established a withdrawal deadline in 2021 as part of a deal with the Taliban, which also facilitated the release of 5,000 Taliban fighters from captivity. Although Biden criticized the agreement, he ultimately adhered to the full withdrawal plan after becoming president.
“We believed it was important to write this because we wanted to counter lies” propagated by the Trump campaign and Republican lawmakers about Afghanistan, stated Randy Manner, a retired U.S. Army general who signed the letter.
For Republicans, bringing the topic of the Afghanistan withdrawal back into public discourse is a strategic victory, as it emphasizes one of the most notable failures in American foreign policy that occurred during Biden's presidency, regardless of where the blame lies for the final stages of the conflict.
As Trump and Harris prepare to debate on Tuesday, the renewed focus on Afghanistan increases the likelihood that it will be a topic of discussion.
Republicans are intensifying their scrutiny of Harris’s involvement in the withdrawal. “The Afghanistan withdrawal will go down as one of the most embarrassing moments in American history, all thanks to Kamala's incompetence,” declared Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt.
On the flip side, Democrats contend that it was Trump who paved the way for the tumultuous withdrawal before leaving office. They assert that the Biden administration made the necessary decision to conclude a protracted conflict and redirect attention to more pressing threats such as Russia and China.
“Americans are no longer fighting and dying in Afghanistan, and we're now no longer spending tens of billions of dollars a month to fight a war that could not be won,” noted Rep. Jason Crow, a Colorado Democrat and veteran of both the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.
The State Department responded to McCaul’s report with a detailed rebuttal on Monday, accusing the Republican-led investigation of partisan bias, selective use of facts, and obscuring the truth with speculation.
“We will not stand by silently as the department and its workforce are used to further partisan agendas,” the department stated.
McCaul has been actively discussing the findings of his three-year investigation through interviews and news appearances, while Trump campaign representatives are still emphasizing the former president’s connections with Gold Star families of U.S. service members who lost their lives in Afghanistan, despite the recent controversy over his visit to Arlington National Cemetery.
The Harris campaign is countering Republican criticisms on national security through a new advertisement featuring high-ranking former Trump administration officials, including former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, asserting that he is unfit for the role of commander in chief.
Harris, however, must navigate the complexities of showcasing her significant involvement in foreign policy decisions over the past four years while avoiding backlash regarding the outcomes of some of those decisions. It remains uncertain whether she will confront Trump regarding his Afghanistan strategy during the debate or steer the conversation toward other foreign policy matters.
In preparation for the debate, the Harris campaign launched a new section on her website on Monday that details her foreign policy stances, emphasizing that she is “ready to be commander in chief on day one.”
This section refers to Harris’s roles concerning Russia, Ukraine, the Indo-Pacific, Israel and Gaza, and NATO, but notably omits any mention of Afghanistan.
A previous version of this article appeared in PMG's National Security Daily Newsletter. If you enjoy this content, consider signing up for it.
James del Carmen contributed to this report for TROIB News
