Biden 'icy,' 'detached' in face of human suffering from botched Afghanistan withdrawal: Author
Biden was allegedly 'infuriated' by coverage of the withdrawal and called reporting 'overheated'
By Nikolas Lanum Fox News
Published August 29, 2023 1:45pm EDT
An intimate recount of the botched Afghanistan withdrawal described President Biden as a leader who sometimes appeared "icy" and "detached" in the face of human suffering, often stubbornly dismissing advice from foreign policy experts.
In a lengthy piece published in The Atlantic, Biden author Franklin Foer said that while the catastrophic operation showed the "shortcomings" of Biden's inner circle on "obvious display," those who participated in the withdrawal held a "desperate" need to explain their failings.
"Even in the thick of the crisis, as the details of a mass evacuation swallowed them, the members of Biden's inner circle could see that the legacy of the month would stalk them into the next election—and perhaps into their obituaries," Foer wrote.
The crisis also taxed the character and "managerial acumen" of Biden, who "revealed himself" throughout the many calamities that broke out in late August 2021.
"For a man long caricatured as a political weather vane, Biden exhibited determination, even stubbornness, despite furious criticism from the establishment figures whose approval he usually craved," Foer wrote. "For a man vaunted for his empathy, he could be detached, even icy, when confronted with the prospect of human suffering."
The portrait of Biden's character revealed that Biden held a "swaggering faith in himself" regarding foreign policy, often criticizing pundits and diplomats attending the Council on Foreign Relations and the Munich Security Conference.
Those close to the president said he described these establishment figures as "risk-averse, beholden to institutions" and "lazy in their thinking."
"You foreign-policy guys, you think this is all pretty complicated. But it's just like family dynamics," Biden said, according to one aide
In Biden's opinion, diplomacy was "akin to persuading a pain-in-the-ass uncle to stop drinking so much."
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