Finger Pointing In the White House

David Ignatius: “The catastrophe in Kabul has spawned some finger-pointing and second-guessing in what has been a congenial Biden administration. To some White House officials, the military followed Biden’s order to withdraw troops all too quickly, with its commander and most forces gone by early July.”

“The Pentagon counters that the timetable was explicitly endorsed by the White House. Officials across the government complain that the State Department failed to reduce staffing at the embassy soon enough or to prepare visa paperwork for the thousands of Afghan civilians who would need to be evacuated if Kabul fell. And while the CIA warned that the Afghan government was shaky, even pessimists thought it might not fall until October or November.”

“Biden sought to calm that discord Thursday with an embrace of a military that is grieving. But rest assured: When the histories are written, there will be enough blame for all to share. For today, too much sorrow.”