Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued a statement on Afghanistan from her home in San Francisco. We noticed it when a small part of it was quoted on Twitter by a Congressional reporter. To say that her statement is both cringeworthy and remarkably naive is an understatement.
Here’s a tweet that caught my attention as I scrolled through Twitter this morning:
Pelosi: The Taliban must know that the world is watching its actions. We are deeply concerned about reports regarding the Taliban’s brutal treatment of all Afghans, especially women and girls.
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) August 15, 2021
Even for San Fran Nan, that is embarrassingly myopic. Did Pelosi think that warning the Taliban that “the world is watching” would motivate them into less brutal behavior? After twenty years, does she not understand that the Taliban specifically act to shock the world? Their actions are done to literally terrorize the civilized world. They cannot be shamed about anything.
I think our friend Guy Benson speaks for us all.
they don’t care — they’re the f***ing TALIBAN https://t.co/M0UfJai1d7
— Guy Benson (@guypbenson) August 15, 2021
So, read Pelosi’s full statement and then we can discuss it.
“The President is to be commended for the clarity of purpose of his statement on Afghanistan and the actions he has taken.
“The Taliban must know that the world is watching its actions. We are deeply concerned about reports regarding the Taliban’s brutal treatment of all Afghans, especially women and girls. The U.S., the international community and the Afghan government must do everything we can to protect women and girls from inhumane treatment by the Taliban.
“Any political settlement that the Afghans pursue to avert bloodshed must include having women at the table. The fate of women and girls in Afghanistan is critical to the future of Afghanistan. As we strive to assist women, we must recognize that their voices are important, and all must listen to them for solutions, respectful of their culture. There is bipartisan support to assist the women and girls of Afghanistan. One of the successes of U.S.- NATO cooperation in Afghanistan was the progress made by women and girls. We must all continue to work together to ensure that is not eroded.
“Once again, I want to acknowledge the clarity of purpose of President Biden’s statement and the wisdom of his actions. Congress shares the President’s concern for Afghans who have assisted U.S. efforts in country, and we passed Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) legislation to provide for their relocation on a strong, bipartisan basis.
“Most of all, we join the President in acknowledging the sacrifices of our men and women in uniform and their families.”
Let’s take it from the top. Pelosi begins with “commending” Biden for his statement on Afghanistan and the actions he has taken. What clarity? Joe Biden hasn’t provided clarity on any topic for the last seven months, much less on this topic. He said this would not be like leaving Vietnam. He said there would be no Saigon-like airlifts of Americans. He said the U.S. would maintain an embassy in Kabul. He said Kabul would not fall. And, he said the Taliban would not overrun the country any time soon. He was wrong on everything. In just a matter of days, the Taliban has arrived in Kabul and has run off the U.S. ambassador. According to reports on Sunday morning political shows today, Americans are being processed at the airport for departure. This, the Biden administration hopes, will be completed by the end of the month. I hope they live that long.
Pelosi says the world is watching the Taliban and its actions. Yes, Nancy, that is what they want. The Taliban wants us to see their actions. They wish to humiliate America and Joe Biden as much as possible on the world stage. This is what victory looks like for the Taliban. Grandma Nancy scolding them to behave themselves is laughable. A woman her age shouldn’t be so naive about terrorists.
Next Pelosi goes into insisting there are “women at the table” during political settlements. Is she kidding? That isn’t how this is going to work. Women are not human beings in the eyes of the Taliban. Again, where has she been for the last 20 years? We tried to help them and built schools so little girls could go to school. Women were taught about entrepreneurship and started small businesses out of their homes. Laura Bush was mocked for her attempts at helping the women of Afghanistan and her focus on opportunities for them. Women in Afghanistan will go back to living as though they are in the Stone Age. The same is true for their daughters.
Last, Pelosi once again praises Biden. She offers a few words of support for Afghanis who supported us in their country, and then she acknowledges the sacrifices of our military.
This statement is so bad it begged for mocking on social media. If Pelosi can’t do better than this, she should just sit this one out. Clearly, she only released the statement to prop up bumbling Joe.
This is just embarrassing. If this is the best you can do, Madame Speaker, just sit this one out. https://t.co/B2o1OVsGIs
— Karen Townsend (@penguinponders) August 15, 2021
Maybe if we start a hashtag campaign with famous people holding signs and looking sad things will get better.
— G. F. (@GF10701130) August 15, 2021
Speaker Pelosi is warning a terrorist organization that *the world is watching*
Ooooooh.
What's next, demanding that the Taliban's Twitter account be suspended?
That'll really teach 'em a lesson.
— Joel M. Petlin (@Joelmpetlin) August 15, 2021
You get the picture. We can want an end to our involvement in Afghanistan while also acknowledging that the Biden administration has completely botched it. They were horribly ill-prepared to carry out the U.S. withdrawal, as it turns out. Everything is a surprise to them now. The fact that Biden is on vacation during this crisis is inexcusable. It brings up memories of all the times his former boss left town during tough times to fundraise or whatever – it shows an indifference.
I’ll end with this clip that will live on forever. It reminds us that Biden has been historically wrong about foreign policy for his entire political career, though Democrats tout his expertise. Biden didn’t even want Obama to take the opportunity to kill Osama bin Laden when SEAL Team 6 took him out. It was always going to be tough to leave Afghanistan, though it has to be done. Biden made it a lot worse of a humanitarian crisis than it had to be. No amount of spinning from Nancy Pelosi is going to make it better.
This may become the most infamous — and devastating — press conference ever held by an American President. pic.twitter.com/j4kKwyPDVm
— BDW (@BryanDeanWright) August 15, 2021
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