Biden finds few Capitol Hill allies amid Afghanistan backlash
By Jordain Carney - 08/18/21 06:00 AM EDT
President Biden is getting little cover from Congress as he faces broad backlash over his handling of the U.S. withdrawal in Afghanistan.
Some Democrats, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), have rallied to Biden’s side and circulated White House talking points to their members. Pelosi also urged Democrats during a conference call to stand behind Biden, according to a source familiar with the conversation.
But the quick fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban, images of chaos coming out of Kabul and questions about how, and how quickly, Americans and tens of thousands of Afghan allies and their families will get evacuated have merged into broad, bipartisan frustration between the two sides of Pennsylvania Avenue.
Though Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, criticized the Trump administration’s agreement with the Taliban as “wholly inadequate,” he also didn’t spare Biden.
“I am disappointed that the Biden administration clearly did not accurately assess the implications of a rapid U.S. withdrawal,” Menendez said.
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https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/568297-biden-finds-few-capitol-hill-allies-amid-afghanistan-backlash
