The 300
That's the best estimate of how many Americans are likely to be left behind in Afghanistan, but no one knows for sure. Unofficially, about 117,000 people have been airlifted out of Afghanistan. The overwhelming majority of them are Afghans refugees, some without any paperwork at all, but we couldn't get every American out.
The Biden Administration assures us that they have assurances from the Taliban that the radical Islamists will cooperate in getting any remaining Americans home in the days and weeks ahead. Seriously.
We're now relying on the people we have been trying to eliminate for the past 20 years, the same people who have been killing us for the past 20 years, to get our fellow citizens home. The Pentagon and the State Department are at each other's throats over how the evacuation was handled.
Hundreds of veterans and former special forces members organized massive, independent rescue operations because of the ineptness of our own government. Christian ministries like Samaritan's Purse were also involved. We may never know how many Americans they saved.
One of the heroes running such an operation said he was contacted by someone very high up in the government, someone most Americans would recognize, privately asking if they could help get more people out.
The Biden Administration claims to have a lot of leverage over the Taliban. It seems to me that they have a lot of leverage over us. They specialize in hostage taking. Why wouldn't they just use these 300 Americans as leverage?
Meanwhile, U.S. forces carried out a drone strike Sunday preempting a second suicide attack on the Kabul airport, which is now being targeted by rocket attacks.
Returning Home
Many presidents have said that there is nothing more difficult than being on the tarmac at Dover Air Force Base saluting our fallen heroes as they return home. Presidents, including Donald Trump, have said that calling families to personally express their condolences and to thank them for the sacrifice they made after a son or daughter wearing the uniform of the United States dies is a heart-wrenching experience.
I assume Biden will make those calls, if he hasn't already, and most parents will be respectful. But in recent days an unusually large number of Gold Star parents and family members (here and here) publicly said what they thought of Biden and how he has mismanaged this operation.
Busy Fighting COVID
While they were standing on the tarmac at Dover Air Force Base welcoming our fallen heroes home, I couldn't help but notice that the entire leadership of our country -- all vaccinated -- were wearing masks outside. I guess they are really worried about their own health.
If only they had shown that much concern about the health and well-being of the military personnel who died. Depending on the Taliban's goodwill to prevent suicide bombers from reaching the perimeter of the base is absurd. But that wasn't the only expression of Biden's absurdity.
At one point during the dignified transfer ceremony, Biden checked his watch – as if he had something more important to do!
After leaving Dover, Biden went to FEMA to get a report on Hurricane Ida. At the end of the presentation, he was asked about Afghanistan and, of course, he refused to answer any questions about Afghanistan.
But Biden told residents of Louisiana that if they haven't already evacuated, they should get to a shelter quickly. He also told them to wear their masks and socially distance in the shelter.
I'd like to see the mask that can survive hurricane force winds. And I doubt there was much social distancing going on in many hurricane shelters while people worried whether their homes would survive.
The American Spirit
I've been on the road the last few days, and I've seen how many Americans have been gripped by anger, sadness and mourning. I've seen flags on homes lowered to half-staff. I know there were many prayers for the families of our fallen heroes in many churches this Sunday.
But there was something else springing out of Trump's America. It's not clear who started it, but at bars and restaurants all over America, tables were set with 13 empty places. Some included 13 drinks. In some cases, a small American flag was placed at the table. Others included the names of the fallen.
No one dared disturb the tables at whatever establishment they were in. This was an example of what Abraham Lincoln referred to as the "mystic chords of memory" that unite patriot graves everywhere.
There's a song from Les Miserables, "Do You Hear The People Sing," that became an anthem of the MAGA movement. But there's another song from that same play called, "Empty Chairs At Empty Tables." Here are some of the lyrics:
"There's a grief that can't be spoken
There's a pain goes on and on
Empty chairs at empty tables
Now my friends are dead and gone. . .
"The very words that they had sung
Became their last communion
On this lonely barricade
At dawn. . .
"Oh my friends, my friends
Don't ask me what your sacrifice was for
Empty chairs at empty tables
Where my friends will sing no more.
Kudos To Col. Scheller!
Remember this name: Lt. Col. Stuart Scheller. Scheller posted a video last week demanding accountability from the military brass for the fiasco that has taken place in Kabul.
"I want to say this very strongly: I have been fighting for 17 years," Scheller said. "I am willing to throw it all away to say to my senior leaders: I demand accountability."
Not surprisingly, he was relieved of command. Scheller posted a second video on Sunday announcing that he was resigning immediately, just three years short of retirement.
I hope Scheller's words trigger a new grassroots movement, just as Rick Santelli's famous rant launched the Tea Party movement. Americans of all backgrounds are beyond frustrated by the lack of accountability in government.
There has been no accountability for the way our intelligence agencies attempted to bring down Trump's presidency. No one went to jail for using a debunked dossier, partisan opposition research, to undermine the duly elected administration. No one who lied to the federal courts to get illegal wire taps went to jail.
They tried to put Michael Flynn in jail. They want to put Trump's lawyers in jail. But any leftist who breaks the law to advance the cause of the left gets a job on CNN and a big book contract.
This Marine speaks truth to power, calling out the chain of command, and he's out of a job. Meanwhile, Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman leaked a secret phone call, hoping to take out the commander-in-chief over a policy dispute, and he's celebrated as a hero.
Once again, the double standard of justice is on full display. It's beyond disgusting, and it needs to end!
Kudos to Col. Scheller for speaking out. He speaks for millions of Americans who want accountability for this needless loss of life and the damage done to our national honor.