Political Wire

  • Front Page
  • Trending
  • Members
    • Subscribe
    • Sign In
  • Contact Us
You are here: Home / Foreign Affairs / Trump Plans to Cede Parts of Afghanistan to Taliban

Trump Plans to Cede Parts of Afghanistan to Taliban

July 28, 2018 at 6:58 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The Trump administration is urging American-backed Afghan troops to retreat from sparsely populated areas of the country, officials said, all but ensuring the Taliban will remain in control of vast stretches of the country,” the New York Times reports.

“The approach is outlined in a previously undisclosed part of the war strategy that President Trump announced last year… It is meant to protect military forces from attacks at isolated and vulnerable outposts, and focuses on protecting cities such as Kabul, the capital, and other population centers.”

FavoriteLoadingSave to Favorites
  • Bluesky
  • X
  • Threads
  • Facebook
  • Email

Filed Under: Foreign Affairs Tagged With: Afghanistan

From our partner: Ground News

The News Has Blind Spots. Most of Us Never See Them.

You already know the problem: the same story can look completely different depending on where you read it — and some stories barely show up at all because algorithms often decide what you see in the first place.

My goal for Political Wire is to help you get outside those filters — to understand not just what happened, but how it’s being covered and who might be missing it. That’s why I use and recommend Ground News.

They're an app and website that brings together global news from across the political spectrum, showing each source’s bias, factuality, and ownership.

What I find especially useful is the Blindspot Feed. It highlights stories that are getting heavy coverage on one side of the political spectrum but little to none on the other. It’s a quick way to see what your usual news diet — and its algorithms — may be leaving out.

For a limited time, get 40% off a Ground News Vantage subscription —- the same one I use —- by going to www.groundnews.com/political.



Recent Posts

Lobbyist Quietly Pleads Guilty After Embezzling $1 Million

March 11, 2026 at 8:56 am EDT

Jonas Murphy quietly pleaded guilty just before Christmas to felony interstate transportation of stolen property, according to the previously unreported plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District…

JD Vance Criticized for Silence on Iran War

March 11, 2026 at 8:46 am EDTMarch 11, 2026 at 8:47 am EDT

“Vice President JD Vance will soon kick off a domestic fundraising tour, marking a reemergence amid reported frustration among allies over his silence about the Iran war,” Semafor reports. Save…

Trump Can’t Decide Whether the War Is Still Going On

March 11, 2026 at 8:43 am EDT

David Graham: “The Trump administration can’t say why the United States went to war with Iran, and it can’t say what the goal of the war is. Now it can’t…

Former Virginia First Lady Runs for Congress

March 11, 2026 at 8:40 am EDT

Former Virginia first lady Dorothy McAuliffe (D) is running for Congress in the state’s newly drawn 7th congressional district, the Washington Post reports. Save to Favorites

Jeffrey Epstein’s Accountant to Be Questioned

March 11, 2026 at 8:37 am EDT

“The House Oversight Committee is set to depose Jeffrey Epstein’s longtime accountant on Wednesday, potentially shedding light on how the disgraced financier was able to manage his multimillion-dollar fortune,” ABC…

Russia Is Giving Iran Advice on Drone Tactics

March 11, 2026 at 8:25 am EDT

“Russia is helping Iran with advanced drone tactics from its war in Ukraine to hit US and Gulf nation targets in the Middle East, according to a Western intelligence official,”…

Are Americans Really That Divided?

March 11, 2026 at 8:16 am EDT

Axios: “Most Americans are too busy for social media, too normal for politics, too rational to tweet. They work, raise kids, coach Little League, go to a house of worship,…

Bennie Thompson Defeats Young Challenger

March 11, 2026 at 8:12 am EDTMarch 11, 2026 at 8:13 am EDT

Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), the longest-serving congressional Black Democrat in Mississippi, won his primary race for the 2nd congressional district on Tuesday, offering a rebuttal to calls for older lawmakers…

Oil Prices Climb Again

March 11, 2026 at 8:09 am EDTMarch 11, 2026 at 8:09 am EDT

“Oil prices forged higher as concern over disruption to energy flows in the Middle East outweighed hopes that governments will agree to a record release of oil reserves,” the Wall…

Issa’s Seat Now Leans Democratic

March 11, 2026 at 8:06 am EDT

Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball: “Democrats are now favored in the open CA-48 following Rep. Darrell Issa’s (R) retirement—it profiles as the kind of open seat that very often flips in…

This War’s Economic Crisis Could Get Much Worse

March 11, 2026 at 7:39 am EDT

Derek Thompson: “This isn’t just about the price of oil. It’s about everything oil becomes—fertilizer, AI chips, plastic—and the cost of snapping the achilles heel of the global shipping economy.”…

Trump Directs War With the Markets Top of Mind

March 11, 2026 at 7:02 am EDT

“President Trump’s fixation on financial markets as the measure of his stewardship of the economy came into focus again this week when he vacillated on his outlook for the length…

Bondi Has Moved to Military Housing Because of Threats

March 11, 2026 at 7:01 am EDT

“Attorney General Pam Bondi has quietly relocated to one of several military bases in the Washington area where other Trump administration officials also live, after facing threats from drug cartels…

Trump’s Iran War Messaging Is All Over the Map

March 11, 2026 at 6:58 am EDT

Axios: “Across interviews, press conferences and social media, Trump floated and erased timelines, predicted the war’s end or promised new escalation, and argued he must choose Iran’s new leader while…

Inside the GOP Plan to Save the Midterms

March 11, 2026 at 6:54 am EDT

“President Trump’s top advisers are urging House Republicans to turn the 2026 midterms into a choice election — and hammer Democrats on taxes, crime and border security,” Axios reports. “Midterm…

U.S. and Israel Have Different Timelines for War

March 11, 2026 at 6:52 am EDT

“President Trump’s suggestions that the war with Iran might soon be over are bringing a new problem to the fore: Israel and the U.S. have different ideas on when to…

‘Titanic’ Statue of Trump and Epstein on the Mall

March 11, 2026 at 6:46 am EDT

Washington Post: “The anonymous artists who have targeted President Donald Trump with satirical statues and installations in Washington struck again on the National Mall on Tuesday morning with an enormous…

How Trump Miscalculated Iran’s Response to War

March 11, 2026 at 6:39 am EDT

New York Times: “The extent of that miscalculation was laid bare in recent days, as Iran threatened to fire at commercial oil tankers transiting the Strait of Hormuz, the strategic…

White House Isn’t Panicking About Oil Prices

March 11, 2026 at 6:36 am EDT

“The Trump administration believes it can withstand a brief spike in oil prices — for as many as four weeks, as one person close to the White House suggested —…

A Tough Time to Be a Republican on Capitol Hill

March 11, 2026 at 6:33 am EDT

Punchbowl News: “Dragged by President Donald Trump into another war in the Middle East, the GOP’s problems are growing worse every day, and there’s no sign things have hit bottom…

« Black Man Accuses Spicer of Using Racial Slur
Liberal Secret-Money Group Hammers House GOP »

Your Account

Sign in

Members Only

  • A Familiar Spiral of Disorder
  • Iran War Elevates Marco Rubio
  • Republicans On Track for a Blowout in the Midterms
  • A Few Thoughts on One Week of War
  • Kristi Noem’s Unforgivable Mistake

Trial Balloon

Add Trial Balloon to your podcast player to get new episodes each week.


About Political Wire

goddard-bw-snapshotTaegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

Praise for Political Wire

“There are a lot of blogs and news sites claiming to understand politics, but only a few actually do. Political Wire is one of them.”

— Chuck Todd, host of “Meet the Press”

“Concise. Relevant. To the point. Political Wire is the first site I check when I’m looking for the latest political nugget. That pretty much says it all.”

— Stuart Rothenberg, editor of the Rothenberg Political Report

“Political Wire is one of only four or five sites that I check every day and sometimes several times a day, for the latest political news and developments.”

— Charlie Cook, editor of the Cook Political Report

“The big news, delicious tidbits, pearls of wisdom — nicely packaged, constantly updated… What political junkie could ask for more?”

— Larry Sabato, Center for Politics, University of Virginia

“Political Wire is a great, great site.”

— Joe Scarborough, host of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe”

“Taegan Goddard has a knack for digging out political gems that too often get passed over by the mainstream press, and for delivering the latest electoral developments in a sharp, no frills style that makes his Political Wire an addictive blog habit you don’t want to kick.”

— Arianna Huffington, founder of The Huffington Post

“Political Wire is one of the absolute must-read sites in the blogosphere.”

— Glenn Reynolds, founder of Instapundit

“I rely on Taegan Goddard’s Political Wire for straight, fair political news, he gets right to the point. It’s an eagerly anticipated part of my news reading.”

— Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist.

Copyright © 2026 · Goddard Media LLC | Privacy Policy | Corrections Policy

Political Wire ® is a registered trademark of Goddard Media LLC