US ‘absolutely emboldened’ Taliban, Cheney says, blaming Biden for not reversing Trump deal

A top US lawmaker says America has “absolutely emboldened” Taliban in Afghanistan, suggesting that President Joe Biden should have reversed a deal clinched in the administration of former President Donald Trump.

“We absolutely emboldened the Taliban," said Rep. Liz Cheney on NBC News as the Biden administration was coming under unprecedented pressure over the US chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan as well as the Taliban’s return to power in the capital Kabul.

The US president has been pinning blame on others for the situation in Afghanistan, including Trump over an agreement reached with Taliban under his direction and his top diplomat, Mike Pompeo.

"[W]e sat down and negotiated with terrorists, because we completely excluded the Afghan government from those negotiations, we gave credibility to the Taliban," she said. “Secretary Pompeo told us that the Taliban was going to renounce al Qaeda. They told us that the Taliban was going to fight terrorists. They forced the Afghan national government, we did, to release 5,000 prisoners. So we completely undercut the Afghan national government.”

In his defense, Biden has argued that he had to go along with the agreement the United States had reached with Taliban in the previous administration.   

Biden ‘underestimated’ Taliban, to ‘have blood on his hands’

The top-ranking Republican in US House foreign affairs committee says President Joe Biden is going to “have blood on his hands,” over the situation in Afghanistan.

"I think there is no question. You know, President Biden is the president of the United States and he's had no problem in reversing course on other things. He decided he's going to rejoin the [Iran nuclear deal]. He decided he's going to rejoin the Paris Climate Accord. He's reversed a number of decisions of the Trump administration," Cheney said.

The US futile and cruel war comes to an end 20 years after invasion of Afghanistan as the Biden administration grapples with repercussions of the Taliban takeover of most of the country.

"President Biden ignored the advice of his military leadership and decided instead he's going to withdraw. And all you have to do is look at what is unfolding today," Cheney added.

The US representative for Wyoming's at-large congressional district is among key figures blaming both the Biden and Trump administrations for the fall of the government in Kabul.

With turmoil continuing amid the US withdrawal, the issue of Afghan refugees is potentially turning into a contentious issue between Republicans and Democrats.

Conservatives who generally favor the idea of close borders are concerned about a possible influx of Afghan refugees into the country as Taliban moves to consolidate its power.  

‘Well, we want to welcome those that are fully vetted. That is extremely important that we make sure they are vetted before they touch down on American soil. And that is why it is so important that we continue working with these third country nations, providing them whatever support we can within those countries,” said Iowa Republican Senator Joni Ernst. “And this is where President Biden, unfortunately, has really -- he has messed it up.”

Since the evacuation of US forces and personnel began, the Biden administration has been forced to dispatch even more troops to the country to manage the withdrawal, triggering even harsher criticism from his opponents.

“This whole thing has been a debacle. It falls right on President Biden's shoulders, no matter how many fingers he's pointing at other agencies and other administrations, this falls directly on his shoulders, haphazard planning, no real plan to evacuate American citizens, now we've had to go in and over more than double the number of troops that we had in just a few months ago in order to safely get Americans out,” Ernst said. “We know that they’re in jeopardy. We want to see them safely back with their families here in the United States.”

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