Two Questions about Afghan Refugees
https://townhall.com/columnists/byronyor...fugees-n2595445
Byron York
Posted: Sep 08, 2021 12:01 AM
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Biden administration officials are proud of their effort to airlift about 118,000 Afghans, plus somewhere between 5,000 and 6,000 U.S. citizens, from the Kabul airport in the final days of the president's botched withdrawal from Afghanistan. But still unanswered are two key questions: One, who did we leave behind? And two, who did we bring out?

The administration would prefer you did not ask those questions. The spin out of the White House is that the president is ready to move on, to turn the page after the mess in Afghanistan. But that will not be possible, at least for a while.

On the first question, White House chief of staff Ron Klain now says the number of U.S. citizens left in Afghanistan is lower than earlier thought. "We believe it's around 100," Klain said recently. "We're in touch with all of them who we have identified on a regular basis."

Klain also made clear that the United States is now dependent on the assistance of others to help U.S. citizens in Afghanistan. "We're hopeful that, in the coming days, the Qataris will be able to resume air service out of Kabul," he said. "And if they do, we're obviously going to look to see if Americans can be part of those flights."

With that, Klain summarized U.S. weakness in Afghanistan. The United States, which depended on the good graces of the Taliban to stage the evacuation, is now hoping Qatar can lend a hand with the U.S. citizens American forces left behind.

The Biden administration's position has enraged some Democratic lawmakers on Capitol Hill. Not long after Klain spoke, Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal sent out a series of tweets about the Taliban blocking two planes holding some U.S. citizens from leaving the Afghan city of Mazar-i-Sharif. "My staff and I have worked night and day to secure the safe passage of two planes waiting in Mazar-i-Sharif to take American citizens, at-risk Afghan allies and their families to safety," Blumenthal said. "I have been deeply frustrated, even furious, at our government's delay and inaction."

With a prominent member of the president's own party agitating for action, it does not seem likely the White House will be able to quickly turn the page from Afghanistan.

But then there is the second question: Who did we bring out?-- excerpt, rest at link above --