Ten generals and admirals are defending Kamala Harris as Republicans are trying to tie her to a GOP report released on Monday that ties her to the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan.
The retired military brass defending Harris includes three with four-stars: Admiral Steve Abbot, who served as deputy homeland security advisor to George W. Bush, Gen. Lloyd W. Newton and Gen. Larry R. Ellis, who has never previously endorsed a political candidate.
“Without involving the Afghan government, [Trump] and his Administration negotiated a deal with the Taliban that freed 5,000 Taliban fighters,” the retired military officials wrote.
House Republicans on Monday released a scathing 353-page report on the Biden administration’s withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 202, laying the blame at Biden’s feet, as well as national security adviser Jake Sullivan, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and VP Kamala Harris — alleging that Harris was “the last person in the room” when Biden decided to proceed with the withdrawal.
According to the report:
- The U.S. first agreed to withdraw from Afghanistan through the 2020 Doha Agreement, which was forged by the Trump administration and the Taliban. Biden administration officials were set on ending the 20-year conflict even though the Taliban was not meeting its obligations under the Doha Agreement. Since the U.S. left Afghanistan, Afghan women and girls have lost gains and the country has become a haven for terrorists.
- Democrats contested, in their own 59-page response, that the Doha Agreement did not include input from the Afghan government and did not require the Taliban to respect the country’s constitution or women’s rights. Democrats also said that any pause or reversal of the planned withdrawal would have sparked increasing hostility from the Taliban and prolonged the conflict.
- “Vice President Harris, despite publicly championing Afghan women’s rights, appears to have been working in lockstep with President Biden behind the scenes to withdraw all U.S. troops no matter the consequence to Afghan women and girls,” the report said.
“The Biden-Harris administration was determined to withdraw from Afghanistan, with or without the Doha Agreement and no matter the cost,” the report said. “Accordingly, they ignored the conditions in the Doha Agreement, pleas of the Afghan government, and the objections by our NATO allies, deciding to unilaterally withdraw from the country.”
