Trump to Link Harris to Chaotic Afghanistan Withdrawal in National Guard Speech

Former President Donald Trump addressed National Guard soldiers in Michigan on Monday, focusing on his foreign policy achievements while directly linking Vice President Kamala Harris to the tumultuous withdrawal from Afghanistan, which marked a significant point of contention for the Biden administration.

This speech coincides with the third anniversary of a tragic event—a suicide bombing at Hamid Karzai International Airport on August 26, 2021. This attack resulted in the deaths of 13 U.S. service members and over a hundred Afghan civilians, with the Islamic State group claiming responsibility.

Trump, the leading Republican candidate for the presidential nomination, delivered his remarks at 2 p.m. Eastern time during the National Guard Association of the United States’ 146th General Conference & Exhibition, held in Detroit.

Following President Biden’s suspension of his reelection campaign, Trump has sharpened his focus on Vice President Harris, who has now assumed the mantle of the Democratic presidential nominee. A key point of Trump’s critique revolves around Harris’s claims of being the final decision-maker in the administration’s Afghanistan strategy.

“She proudly stated she was the last person in the room, and indeed she was. She was present when they made the decision to withdraw troops from Afghanistan,” Trump stated during a rally in North Carolina last week. “She had the final vote. She had the final say, and she supported the withdrawal.”

Relatives of the servicemen who lost their lives in the Kabul bombing appeared at the Republican National Convention last month, expressing their anger over President Biden’s failure to publicly acknowledge the names of their loved ones. This moment was seen as a reaction to accusations surrounding Trump’s attitude towards veterans, which he has strongly denied, including claims that he referred to fallen World War II heroes as “suckers” and “losers.”

During his presidency, Trump initiated a peace agreement with the Taliban, aimed at concluding the prolonged conflict and bringing American troops back home. Biden later pointed to this agreement when facing criticism for the Afghan government’s collapse, suggesting it compelled him to withdraw troops and set the stage for the ensuing chaos in the country.

A review by the Biden administration regarding the withdrawal conceded that the evacuation of U.S. citizens and allies from Afghanistan should have commenced earlier. However, the report also placed blame on the Afghan government and military, as well as the assessments provided by U.S. military and intelligence agencies.

The two leading U.S. generals overseeing the evacuation admitted that there was a lack of adequate planning for the withdrawal. General Mark Milley, who served as the Joint Chiefs Chairman at the time, informed lawmakers earlier this year that he had advised Biden to retain a residual force of 2,500 troops for support. Ultimately, Biden authorized sustaining a significantly reduced force of 650 troops, designated solely for securing the U.S. embassy in Kabul.