Admin was focused on the symbolism of a victorious exit ceremony on the 20th anniversary of 9/11, seemingly above all. Then, in our rush for the exit, we closed Bagram long before it had outlived its usefulness as an exit point in addition to the Kabul airport, which was basically indefensible as the country collapsed. In the end, we couldn’t even last there until 9/11/21.

Our exit was inevitable. The way it went down was not imo. We delayed months from the deadline in the Trump unilateral surrender agreement, and the Taliban barked about it but didn’t act. If we had made sure that all our responsibilities to our own citizens there, and to our Afghan allies and their families, had been discharged before our last troops left, would the Taliban have launched attacks against us? Even if we played hardball with them and said we’d surge troops back in if necessary? Would they risk their impending victory, after 20 years of waiting, for another 6 or even 12 mths of a continuing but shrinking US presence there? Maybe they would have, but we never tried. Because the entire focus of the Biden admin was apparently the political theater of a 9/11/21 exit ceremony.

Imo anyway. But it’s a stretch to conclude that there was no better way to get our people out, based only on the terribly botched effort we witnessed.