Episode 202 Show Notes- Those Responsible for the Failures in Afghanistan Need to Resign
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Episode Description
The stunning collapse of Afghanistan continues to reverberate throughout the international community and within the United States. The amount of damage this has caused to the United States cannot be overexaggerated. Every American should be mad as hell, and all those who lied, including top military brass, need to be held accountable immediately. Too many within the military leadership would rather be politicians than actually fight and win a war. After thousands of our brave men and women lost their lives. After thousands were maimed. After trillions of dollars spent, every single department and agency needs a top to bottom overhaul.
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Show Transcript- Those Responsible for the Failures in Afghanistan Need to Resign
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Intro
Welcome everyone to The P.A.S. Report Podcast.
I hope you are doing well. I cannot believe that within a week’s timeframe, the Taliban successfully took over Afghanistan. All that money we poured in. Consider that we spent more money in Afghanistan than we did to rebuild Europe after WWII. All the sacrifices our brave young men and women made. And for what? This is now a catastrophic disaster.
The images on the television continue to reverberate throughout the world and within the United States.
I don’t think people realize how much damage this has caused to the United States, but that’s why I’m here.
I’ll breakdown why we failed in Afghanistan. I’ll break down who is responsible for this embarrassment and why they need to be held accountable. I will breakdown what the collapse of Afghanistan means, both domestically and internationally.
More importantly, I’ll discuss how you actually win wars.
Every American should be mad as hell right now. This was something that was largely predictable, and it exemplifies how our institutions are broken. It shows how many of the people at the top are thoroughly incompetent.
And I think that’s the amazing part. Government is the one entity where a person can repeatedly fail, yet they continually get promoted. Understand that those who are responsible for all the failures, are the same ones who’ve been in power for the last 30-40 years pushing these failed policies. At what point do we rid ourselves of these losers.
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Why have we failed in Afghanistan?
In order to understand the damage that has been inflicted on the United States, we first have to realize why and how we failed. This was predictable. As I said on Monday, people like myself have been screaming how this is going to end for the last several years. The writing was on the wall, and I saw right through the BS. However, the one thing I didn’t expect was how quickly it would happen.
I thought it would slowly dissolve into civil war. I did not expect the Taliban to be able to take over the country in less than a week. Of course we were told that wasn’t possible.
Take a listen to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs, Admiral John Kirby.
Sound Clip John Kirby
That was from Friday, and as you know, two days after that Kabul fell to the Taliban. Now take a listen to the pathetic Secretary of State, Tony Blinken.
Sound Clip Tony Blinken
Yet, that’s exactly what happened. Finally, take a listen to President Biden who brushed off any comparison to the fall of Saigon.
Sound Clip Afghanistan won’t be Saigon
No. It wasn’t Saigon. In fact, it was far worse than Saigon. They got this so wrong, and we need accountability. We need accountability in the political leadership, the military leadership, and the intelligence leadership. We need to know why they didn’t see this coming. Something is broken in these institutions, and it needs to be corrected immediately.
We were repeatedly lied to, and since we no longer have a functioning press, instead they would rather serve as the mouthpiece for the ministry of propaganda pushing an agenda, no one called them out. For nearly 20-years, we were told that we were making progress. We were told that we were winning. Whenever there was a hiccup, the military generals, the politicians, and the bureaucrats, would say that all we need to do is recalibrate to get back on track.
Now it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out where we went wrong. The first thing is, we had no established strategic objective in Afghanistan. Whenever you asked anyone to define what victory looked like, they couldn’t answer it.
Instead, it was all this pie in the sky bullshit. They said that victory is when Afghanistan becomes a stable democracy, and once that became the mission, I knew we were doomed.
What does a democratically stable Afghanistan look like? How do you even measure that and how do you even define that? I mean the idea of a democracy is not uniform. It’s not like there’s one type of democracy. And what does stability look like?
I constantly talk about liberty and freedom at The P.A.S. Report. I talk about these concepts because they are at the very essence of the American political philosophy. These concepts are part of our culture even though there are many out there who want to do away with these core principles.
But what no one says out loud is that liberty and freedom is not always compatible with other cultures. The idea that everyone wants to be a democracy is foolish. Many in the world, particularly in places like Afghanistan, would rather stability over liberty. The idea of democracy is not compatible with every place on the planet.
Unfortunately, you have people in the highest levels of power, who went to the greatest schools, who got great educations, yet they are some of the biggest morons who lack any sense of reality and common sense. They operate in a world of theory and what if’s, rather than the reality of the world we live in.
You would think that those in power. Those who make the decision on whether to send young men and women off to war knowing that many will die, many will be injured, many will suffer psychologically for years, you would think they would learn about the country we are fighting, and the culture within that country.
A brief study of Afghanistan tells you that they didn’t get the nickname ‘Graveyard of Empires’ for nothing. The Persians, the Greeks, the Mongols, the Ottomans, the Sikhs, the British, the Soviets, and I’m sure I left out a couple. The idea that we would be different was extremely naïve and arrogant.
There is a reason all those empires lost. It was partly due to geography, but the greatest difficulty was the Afghani culture. There are some who say that we should stay as long as it takes in Afghanistan. That we’re still in Germany, Japan, and Korea. But all that illustrates is how the morons in charge of our policy are so lazy that they didn’t even take the time to understand Afghani culture.
The Germans, the Japanese, and the Koreans are one people, one culture. Afghanistan is disbursed with multiple cultures. It’s a tribal country. There are 14 major ethnic groups, and then there are tribes within those groups. They have thousands of years of conflict with each other, and those disputes still exist to this day.
If you don’t understand the country you’re fighting in, and you don’t understand the people and different cultures within the country, how can we expect to develop a cohesive strategy on victory and what victory looks like.
I mean General Milley talks about how he is an avid reader and wants to understand the enemy, particularly white rage. I would like to know if General Milley ever picked up a history book about Afghanistan, and I’ll talk more about him in a few minutes.
But the idea that we are going to be able to rebuild tribal countries and democratize them is not a serious military objective. It’s not even a serious political objective. Its theoretical discussion debated in academia.
A real strategy was to demolish al-Qaeda’s command and control structure, which we did, and to take out bin Laden, which we did. After that, we should have declared victory, and begun to drawdown. We should have left a small contingent, a strike force, and taken out targets as they arose.
We were warned
However, what happened over the last week shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone within the military, the political world, the media, even the people. We were warned about the deteriorating situation in Afghanistan. We were warned that the generals were lying.
I am not a fan of the Washington Post, and I hate to bring them up, but when they actually do reporting, you have to give credit where it belongs. In 2019, they actually went back to their roots, did some investigative journalism, and reported on the concerns that many in the military had about the lack of understanding of Afghanistan. The lack of vision, and the lack of real strategic objectives. (The Washington Post)
General Douglas Lute was appointed in 2007 to serve as the Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for Iraq and Afghanistan. In a 2015 interview with the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), General Lute stated, “We were devoid of a fundamental understanding of Afghanistan- we didn’t know what we were doing…What are we trying to do here? We didn’t have the foggiest notion of what we were undertaking.” (The Afghanistan Papers)
According to the Washington Post report, “U.S. officials acknowledged that their warfighting strategies were fatally flawed and that Washington wasted enormous sums of money trying to remake Afghanistan into a modern nation.”
They were well aware that we weren’t winning and even manipulated information that they were presenting to the public in order to make it as if victory was achievable. They were knowingly lying, deceiving, and misleading the American public. Many of the top military brass, the bureaucrats, and the elected officials were all in on it.
In the report, it stated, “stabilizing Afghan districts rarely lasted longer than the physical presence of coalition troops and civilians.” Basically, we would play whack a mole. If a province was having difficulty, we would send reinforcements to quell the disturbances, but the minute we left, instability returned. This was true of the entire country.
One of the more concerning aspects was how different factions within our government all had different ideas of what the mission should be. Some argued it is to turn Afghanistan into a democracy. Others wanted to reshape the culture and elevate women’s rights. Others wanted to reshape the balance of power in the region among Pakistan, Iran, India, and Russia. Each one of those strategies are moronic and shows the incompetence within the bureaucracy.
And there were so many other things. They were given billions in taxpayer dollars and told to spend it, even though they didn’t know what to spend it on. Aid money was thrown at corrupt officials, and we sat back and allowed it. In fact, one official said the corruption of the same people we were propping up got so bad that many Afghans actually turned to the Taliban to enforce order and get rid of those officials.
When it came to training Afghan security forces, General Milley repeatedly touted that we were making steady progress. General Milley even went as far to say, “This army and this police force have been very, very effective in combat against the insurgents every single day. And I think that’s an important story to be told across the board.”
However, that was far from the truth. According to people on the ground, the Afghan security forces were “incompetent, unmotivated, and rife with deserters,” and there was zero confidence that Afghan forces can fend off or defeat the Taliban. You would think Milley would be asked about this, but of course, he’s protected.
Even worse, one unnamed military officer stated that, “about a third [of the recruits] seemed to be drug addicts or Taliban.
And remember the troop surge President Obama did from 2009-2011. The administration and top generals were touting progress when the evidence showed quite the opposite.
A senior NSC official said the White House and the Pentagon would routinely spin information and manipulate metrics in order to hide the deteriorating situation. He stated that this was done to “to make everyone involved look good…”
As many were trying to portray a rosy scenario as if we were making progress, General Flynn became suspicious of the reports he was getting. During an interview, General Flynn asked a profound question, “From ambassadors down to the low level, [they all say] we are doing a great job. Really? So, if we are doing such a great job, why does it feel like we are losing?”
Col. Bob Crowley, who served as a counterinsurgency advisor in Afghanistan in 2013 and 2014, stated, “truth was rarely welcome and bad news was often stifled.”
The Afghanistan Papers portrays a corrupt group of people who were in charge and making the decisions.
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Who’s responsible for the failures in Afghanistan?
What the Afghanistan Papers reveal is everything was based on lies and deception in an attempt to mislead the American people.
Gone are the days of the General MacArthur’s, the General Patton’s, the General Eisenhower’s. Instead, there are so many within military leadership who would rather be politicians and power brokers than military commanders that actually fight to win wars.
I constantly bring up the lack of accountability in the system. It’s something I harp on because accountability is so important. When you have accountability, it increases honesty and integrity. Sadly, there are very few in senior positions that have any integrity. It’s really sad when you think about it.
There are so many people that should be held accountable that I can’t name everyone, but I want to start with General Milley because he disgusts me, and he was the one in charge of the training of the Afghan Security Forces. He should resign in disgrace, and his testimonies to Congress should now be scrutinized to see if he committed perjury. The fact is that this loss is devastating to the United States for several reasons, and it will have real-world ramifications. He should be held accountable.
Perhaps if Milley worried less about the phantom ghost of white rage, maybe he would have paid more attention to what was happening in Afghanistan. He now serves as the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs. How can he serve as the principal military advisor to the President, the Secretary of Defense, and the National Security Council, when he failed miserably in training the Afghan Security Forces that he was directly overseeing?
Think about it. He either knowingly lied about the capabilities of the Afghan Security Forces or he is thoroughly incompetent. It’s one or the other. And what good is an advisor, if you have to question their judgment. Either way, Milley should be gone.
He failed in his mission. Only in Washington can you fail, yet still be promoted. Failures like this in the private sector would result in immediate termination, yet in government you get promotions.
Think about it. Milley isn’t the only one. He’s simply a symptom of the Swamp, and it goes beyond political party. The fact is the Afghanistan scam was going on in both Republican and Democrat administrations. Both Republican and Democrat officials were covering up what was really going on in Afghanistan. Everyone involved should be exposed. From military commanders to diplomats to intelligence directors to former Secretaries of Defense. They should all be exposed.
Unfortunately, you got so many dumb people. They think they’re smart because they went to good schools, but they’re not really smart. But these are people who have been in charge or had major influence over our foreign policy for the last 30-40 years. Nearly, every decision they made, every position they advocated for, has been wrong. Why do we still listen to these people? Why are these people still considered “experts?” Why does anyone take what these people say seriously?
And can we finally say that the neocon worldview and military policy has been an abject failure? Can we finally admit that spreading democracy doesn’t really work? Can we finally admit that nation-building is a dumb idea? Can we finally admit that regime change may not always be the best idea? Can we finally stop listening to the Bill Kristol’s and the Max Boot’s of the world when they have been advocating a foreign policy that’s resulted in disaster?
And don’t let the press off the hook. They’re culpable as well. They hardly covered Afghanistan throughout the years, and they for damn sure knew what was going on. Instead of exposing the frauds, the corruption, the incompetence, the failures, they simply covered it up and parroted the government line.
They’re reporting the collapse of Afghanistan as if they’re shocked, but they knew damn well what was going on. The press is supposed to be the government watchdog serving as the fourth estate. They are supposed to be exposing this type of thing, yet they remained silent. And even though I gave the Washington Post credit for their story, understand that the post published that story 2-years ago. Where has the coverage been since then? Why didn’t they, as well as other media outlets, stay on top of that story? Instead, they were complaining about nonexistent Russian collusion and complaining that former President Trump eats fast food.
Maybe if the media didn’t waste their time with BS gossip, maybe, just maybe, they could have reported actual news.
And then there’s the military-industrial complex. Eisenhower warned about the military-industrial complex. I would read the quote, but you should hear it in his own words.
Sound clip Eisenhower Military-Industrial Complex
Just think about how much influence the military contractors pushing billions of dollars in contracts when everyone knew we were failing in Afghanistan. If we really did suspect that 30% of Afghan military recruits were really Taliban, why the hell would we give them this equipment and train them in how to use it?
But see, the military-industrial complex is pretty chummy with the Pentagon and members of Congress. Think about how many military contractors donate to members of Congress and think about how many retired officers of the military sit on the corporate boards or serve as advisors to these companies. Keep that in mind.
Domestic impact
I don’t think people realize the serious impact this has on us domestically. First of all, it’s demoralizing. 20-years. America’s longest-serving war and this is how it ends. Just think about the impact Vietnam had on us. Now granted, we didn’t lose nearly as many soldiers, but the psychological impact of this loss is devastating.
However, the biggest casualty is trust in the military. Not the soldiers, but the senior leadership. Between Iraq, and now Afghanistan, it’s devastating. And this comes at a time where the military was the one institution most Americans still had respect for and believed was operating in good faith.
Over the last several years, we have witnessed the loss of trust and faith in the FBI, the intelligence community, the education, and especially the CDC. Now the left will blame people like me and say the reason people have lost trust in these institutions is that I ask questions and call them out. To that, I say, no. The reason people lost faith in these institutions is that the leadership within these institutions has proven themselves to be wholly corrupt or thoroughly incompetent. They did it to themselves, and sadly, now the DOD will be going on that list.
There is something fundamentally broken within our institutions, and we need to clean house from top to bottom. We need to rid these institutions of the failed bureaucrat. We need to get the government working for the people again, as opposed to the people working for the government.
When you really think about it, it’s hard to trust anyone anymore, whether it be the government, the media, science, education, and so many other things. These institutions have destroyed themselves.
International Impact
But the international impact is far graver. People need to know that there were Afghanis who helped us. There were Afghanis who fought alongside and protected American troops. There were Afghans who put their lives on the line and helped America.
What happens to them? Unfortunately, many of them will be abandoned, and that doesn’t sit well with me. It actually disgusts me. These people counted on us, and now they’re going to be targeted by the Taliban.
Keep in mind that we completely abandoned Dr. Shakil Afridi. This is the man who led us to bin Laden and has been languishing in a Pakistani prison since 2012. Seriously, this is how we treat those who have helped us? And understand, my criticism is of both Democrat and Republican administrations who have allowed this man to sit in a Pakistani prison, a place where no one would ever want to be. If you think an American prison is bad, I can assure you, a Pakistani prison is far worse.
What message does that send? Do you think anyone is going to trust us going forward? Do you know how long it will take to regain trust?
Do you think it will be easier or more difficult to recruit Russian assets to give us information about Russia and Putin? Do you think it will be easier or more difficult to recruit Chinese assets, Cuban assets, Venezuelan assets? The list goes on and on.
This has damaged our intelligence gathering capabilities dramatically,
When we look at how our adversaries are now emboldened. Do you think countries like China, Russia, and Iran, have more fear of American military might or less fear? Do you think these countries are going to become more aggressive in the international community or less aggressive?
The answer is fairly obvious. They know that Americans have absolutely no stomach for a military conflict, and so they can essentially push the boundaries. And believe me, they will. Compound this humiliating loss, and factor in that they have absolutely zero fear of the Biden administration, and I can assure you, they are all going to be seeking to expand their spheres of influence.
What about Afghanistan itself? Well, China has already announced that they will recognize the Taliban and if you listened to my conversation with Lt. Col. Tony Shaffer on Monday, you would know that they’ve been planning for this, and they have a vested interest in Afghanistan. They also have a vested interest to make sure that no one challenges the Taliban.
You see, Afghanistan does have minerals and precious metals, but those resources are useless if the country is mired in a civil war. No country, and no corporation, is going to send resources to a country with the chance that those resources and personnel will be caught in the crossfire. China will certainly fill the void.
Overall, this is an embarrassment for the United States. Many countries will see weakness, and others will say that America is no longer the sole superpower of the world. Our allies and adversaries will question the competence of the United States. We are about to enter a major period of instability within the international community. As our power declines, other nations will rush to fill the void.
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Closing
This is all because of the failures of the so-called policy “experts,” and remember what I have said. We need to do away with the term experts. Many of the officials in charge have been the ones who have been wrong on nearly every policy decision over the last 30-years.
If those who created this debacle had any integrity, they would resign immediately, but they don’t. Instead, they’ll probably be promoted.
Like I said before, we need a total housecleaning within the bureaucracy, not just in the Department of Defense, but all Departments and agencies. They have proven that they are utterly incompetent.
And the next time a decision is made to send our young men and women off to war, make sure we fight to win. You apply overwhelming and decisive force from the beginning, using all of our military capabilities. Part of the failures in Iraq and Afghanistan was due to the Vietnam Syndrome where we send in skeletal forces and base battleplans on how many fatalities the American people are willing to accept.
That’s no way to fight a war. We need to understand that our soldiers are trained to fight and die. That may sound cold and callous, but it’s the reality and if you don’t like it, the simple solution is don’t go to war.
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Before we engage in any conflict, we need to lay out S.M.A.R.T. objectives. Objectives that are Simple, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely. Explain to the American people the importance of the mission, and why we need to go to war.
Be specific, and let’s stop with these stupid ideas of nation-building and creating democracies in countries that have no interest in democracy. If we can’t easily explain what the objectives are and what victory looks like, then don’t engage in conflict.
Enough is enough. Our servicemen and women deserve better. Those that assisted us in this conflict, and the many Afghans that died helping us, deserve better. The American people deserve better.
At what point do we realize that our foreign policy has failed over the last 30-years? At what point do we realize that these failures can all be traced back to the same people. Where is the accountability? If this was a private company, these idiots would have been fired long ago, but not in government. Instead, they continually get promoted, and the pundits and advisors get bigger and bigger contracts. This is just the latest reminder that our institutions are fundamentally broken.
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