As Joe Biden was preparing to take office earlier this year, the then-president-elect started to release the names of those who would fill key positions within his coming administration. From that, one key theme emerged from his supporters — the adults are back in charge.
In fact, the media shouted the phrase from the rooftops, exclaiming their glee at the fact that beltway apparatchiks would once again be calling shots. As late as June, CNN proclaimed “Joe Biden’s message to Vladimir Putin? The adults are back in charge.”
THREAD: The media celebrated the idea that the "adults were back in charge" after Biden's election. Here are a few of the hot takes to compare to the reality we are seeing today. https://t.co/NLWDqAwfS4
— Bonchie (@bonchieredstate) August 16, 2021
— Bonchie (@bonchieredstate) August 16, 2021
And of course, we can't forget Jennifer Rubin. pic.twitter.com/4NAwd2EJ8J
— Bonchie (@bonchieredstate) August 16, 2021
What could go wrong, right? Competence was returning to the building. The adults were back, baby.
Well, what could go wrong is everything. That’s what we are seeing play out on the international stage as the bungled withdrawal from Afghanistan worsens and inflation crushes the middle-class. Apparently, there is more to being the president or other government official than decorum and cocktail circuits.
Jake Sullivan, for example, was one of the figures whose return to power had the media squeeing. He worked for Hillary Clinton, you guys!
Now serving as Biden’s national security advisor, here’s how that’s going.
Asked about last-minute scramble, despite Biden's assurances that wouldn't happen, @JakeSullivan46: "Despite the fact that we spent 20 years and tens of billions of dollars" on the Afghan national security forces "we could not give them the will" to fight and they decided not to. pic.twitter.com/VZylNZB2CJ
— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) August 16, 2021
Sullivan’s response to the military having to rush in and evacuate personnel by air is “Well, we always used helicopters, guys.” I mean, I’ve seen obfuscation from political actors before, but this may take the cake given the seriousness of the situation. And to give credit to the interviewer, she did press Sullivan on the fact that the mode of transportation isn’t the issue, but that the evacuation needed to happen in the first place.
Past the optics, though, the situation with the Afghan military is inexplicable. There is no way that Sullivan, Joe Biden, and everyone else involved weren’t aware of the fragile nature of the situation. Heck, as RedState reported last night, Biden himself banned foreign contractors from remaining in the country to maintain equipment and run logistics for the Afghans. That essentially sunk the Afghan military. For Sullivan to claim they were caught off-guard by the supposed lack of will to fight is just not believable.
Further, it was Biden’s decision to boot Trump’s withdrawal plan and wait an extra three months. That time was crucial in allowing the Taliban to amass their forces and gather materials from Pakistan. But for the White House, spiking the football on 9/11 was more important, something that never made sense in the first place. Why telegraph your defeat on the day that prompted the war?
This should be a lesson for everyone. The establishment in Washington is made up of idiots, not brilliant tacticians. From Joe Biden to Jake Sullivan to Antony Blinken, and that’s just dealing with the foreign policy side, the administration is stocked full of clowns who wouldn’t know how to strategize their way out of a paper bag. The media were so blinded by their own jubilance in Trump’s demise that they lied to everyone about what was coming.
Now, we are seeing the fruit of that. The next time someone says the “adults are back in charge,” run the other way.
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