Page 572 - Administrations News Today

We killed bin laden and addressed that basic threat but weve given up on the rhetoric that was central to the mission in afghanistan certainly at the beginning in those days when we thought we could build this new nation and transform afghanistan and the region more broadly but even in subsequent administrations when we thought there was something taking hold and had a really hard time as outsiders, having a sense of just how profound the problems were. >> i remember going out with marines on pa...

Believe the number is still in the thousands that we continue to hope and pray for their very safety. >> and for our military men and women. frighted to hornets this. kevin, and the critics been slamming the president for that speech being started several hours late and then talking about has built before he ever got to this crisis in afghanistan were american mice are in the balance. and then theres this come abruptly leaving without taking questions from reporters, including our own peter duce...

Afghanistan certainly at the beginning in those days when we thought we could build this new nation and transform afghanistan and the reach more broadly but even in subsequent administrations when we thought there was something taking hold and had a really hard time as outsiders, having a sense of just how profound the problems were. >> i remember going out with marines on patrol and driving to some village and the marines risking their lives to get to this village, a tiny speck on a map meeting...

Sure if anyone said there were 300,000 afghan army forces. no one was sure, that was the numbers on the rolls. but if some commander in some province was just padding the books and taking the money. >> thats right. and there were times as you know as well as anyone we were perfectly aware of what was going on but felt so incapable of dealing with it there was this inclination again over multiple administrations to sweep that under the rug. if you go back to those first years in afghanistan that ...

And i dont know if we did a good job or not. but certainly a lot of people worked very hard to try to make it work. >> you raise a good point. i worked in the state department about eight years after the war in afghanistan had started. and even then we were struggling to define what our basic objectives were and what our basic metrics were. and there were times you could look at the numbers of girls or women in school or the numbers of new ngos serving in kabul and you could see indicators of su...

Im wondering how that process has been in the people youre working -- or have been working on because i talked to a lot of people, a number of former service members who were trying to get out, former translators and stuff for years and said with the last administration and this administration, the whole process, it seemed like it was being slow walked. >> so both of those statements are true. there have been cases weve been working for years, and youre getting the message from the state departm...

But if some commander in some province was just padding the books and taking the money. >> thats right. and there were times you know as well as anyone we were perfectly aware of what was going on but felt so incapable of dealing with it there was this inclination again over multiple administrations to sweep that under the rug. if you go back tathose first years in afghanistan that was really the moment when we probably had the best chance to commit to a nation building mission in a more serious...

Huge high of relief after watching for the vast majority of my adult life -- 9/11 occurred when i was a senior in high school. after watching this war drag on for over 20 years across four presidential administrations, i am greatly relieved that we finally have a president in joe biden who acknowledges the truth and is willing to take and endure the political risk to bring this war to its inevitable end. >> and what were seeing this week and what were seeing in the coverage is the political risk...

Service officer veteran experienced diplomat in generations. before he became confirmed as director of cia he was deputy secretary of state, u.s. ambassador to russia. he served over multiple administrations for public and democrat and is almost universally well liked in washington, not because he is -- plays the game and is overly, you know, obseqmeus with people, but because he is extroid narrowly intelligent and competent. it was a diplomatic capacity with which hes talking with him, negotiat...

Administration and this sfrgz, the whole process, it seemed like it was being slow walked. >> so both of those statements are true. there have been cases weve been working for years, and youre getting the message from the state department this person from through the cracks or finally we were able to just get them through because all of a sudden it hit in an emergency situation. cases wed been working like i said literally through two administrations. and there were cases veterans brought to us ...