One year later, ICYMI... WTH is going on with the Taliban takeover? Frederick Kagan on the fall of Kabul, the Afghan army’s role, and Biden’s surrender to the Taliban
What the Hell Is Going On
AEI Podcasts
4.4 • 633 Ratings
🗓️ 17 August 2022
⏱️ 45 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
One year later, a WTH throwback to an outstanding pod recorded in the wake of the disastrous withdrawal…
Almost 20 years after the U.S. invaded Afghanistan in the wake of the 9/11 attacks, the Taliban are back in control of the country. After President Biden’s decision to depart Afghanistan regardless of conditions on the ground, and the withdrawal of U.S. intelligence and air support to the Afghan army, the Taliban rapidly advanced, culminating in the collapse of the Afghan government.
Dr. Frederick W. Kagan joined Marc and Dany to discuss the Taliban takeover, President Biden’s decision, the role of the Afghan army, and the impact on al Qaeda.
Kagan is the director of AEI’s Critical Threats Project and a former professor of military history at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He served on the ground in Afghanistan, providing civilian support to the U.S. military mission.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | What the hell's going on? |
| 0:01.7 | What the hell is going on? |
| 0:03.0 | What the hell is going on? |
| 0:04.2 | I don't know what the hell he's talking about. |
| 0:05.9 | You don't have to know what the hell is on it. |
| 0:07.8 | What hell's the matter with these guys? |
| 0:09.2 | We don't know what's going on. |
| 0:11.0 | What hell's going on? |
| 0:12.0 | Who in God's name knows what it's all about. Hi, I'm Danielle Fetka. |
| 0:28.5 | And I'm Mark Ethan. |
| 0:29.8 | Welcome to our podcast. |
| 0:31.5 | What the hell is going on? |
| 0:33.7 | Mark, what the bloody hell is going on? |
| 0:36.8 | The Taliban are back in charge of Afghanistan. |
| 0:39.9 | We are in the middle of our August hiatus that we told you all about, |
| 0:43.9 | that we were going to take a month off because nothing ever happens in August. |
| 0:47.2 | Apparently, the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan happens in August. |
| 0:52.1 | So we have come out of hiatus to do an emergency episode of this |
| 0:55.0 | podcast because what is unfolding before our eyes in Afghanistan right now is, honestly, |
| 1:01.8 | I said this on Fox the other day, and I repeat it here, it's the worst thing I've seen in |
| 1:06.9 | three decades in Washington, the most horrifying thing I've seen in three decades in Washington, |
| 1:11.1 | the betrayal of our allies, the abdication of American leadership on the world stage, |
... |
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