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PRESENTED BY

BY JOHN BRESNAHAN, ANNA PALMER AND JAKE SHERMAN
WITH MAX COHEN AND CHRISTIAN HALL

THE TOP

In early 2002, then Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair Joe Biden gave a speech on Afghanistan. During a recent visit to Kabul, Biden said he was asked this by everyone he met in the Afghan capital: “Would America stay the course? After all our successful military actions, after all our promises on reconstruction, after all our commitments to prevent Afghanistan from relapsing into chaos and warlordism, would we really have the stomach to get the job done?”

Biden’s answer then: “We can, we must, and we will.”

Today, nearly 20 years later and as president of the United States, Biden will give a very different answer: America stayed the course in Afghanistan, and now it’s time to bring our troops home. His arc of commitment to the military  effort in Afghanistan has mirrored the American people’s, in many ways.

Biden will meet with his national security team at the White House, and then he’s scheduled to give remarks on the end of the longest war in U.S. history.

Biden is expected to emphasize what the U.S. government will do to help Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in his fight with the Taliban, and what the U.S. will do to help the Afghani people. Yet there are similarities to the U.S. withdrawal from South Vietnam in 1973 and the “Vietnamization” of that struggle. Some military and intelligence experts are predicting Ghani’s government will only last between six and 12 months before a Taliban takeover. Afghan government troops have even fled to neighboring Tajikistan.

We’ve already seen the incredible pictures from Bagram Air Base, which was looted following the sudden departure of U.S. and allied forces. Some Afghan officials assert they weren’t told that the Americans were about to leave the massive facility, which once housed tens of thousands of U.S. troops, although American officials dispute that claim.

Biden was initially a liberal hawk on Afghanistan. Biden supported then President George W. Bush’s handling of the early part of the war; he didn’t want to “show ‘daylight’ between himself and the administration, or to seem to be ‘micro-managing’ the war strategy." Biden pressed for billions of dollars in non-military aid to Afghanistan to help rebuild the war-shattered country following the U.S.-led defeat of the Taliban.

But by the time he took over as VP in 2009, Biden had turned firmly against the war. And as a presidential candidate in 2020, Biden promised to end “forever wars” in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Politically, Biden faces a steep challenge. Critics will say whatever happens next in Afghanistan is because of the Biden-led withdrawal. There will be the inevitable comparisons to Vietnam, and some Republicans will blame Biden for “losing” Afghanistan. There are predictions of a looming civil war.

But former President Donald Trump had planned an even faster withdrawal from Afghanistan than Biden. Overall, there’s little stomach on Capitol Hill for continuing the struggle, which has led to the deaths of more than 2,400 U.S. troops, as well as the loss of tens of thousands of Afghans. Estimates put the total cost of the war at over $2 trillion, including more than $100 billion spent on building up the capability of the Afghan defense forces. You will find wounded veterans of this war in VA hospitals decades from now.

So while Biden expresses his commitment to the continuing security of the Afghani people, he will face a skeptical Congress that wants to move on. 

The Coverage: 

→ CNN: “Biden to speak on Afghanistan amid US troop withdrawal and Taliban gains,” by Kevin Liptak

→ WaPo: “Taliban’s rapid advance across Afghanistan puts key cities at risk of being overtaken,” by Susannah George in Kabul 

→ WSJ: “A Generation of Afghan Professionals Flees Ahead of Taliban Advance,” by Yaroslav Trofimov in Kabul

THE POST JAN. 6 REALITY

The Capitol, no longer fenced in

The fence that’s provided a protective ring around the Capitol since Jan. 6 is coming down. Here’s the note from William Walker, the House sergeant at arms. 

TO:                  All Members of Congress and Congressional Staff  

FROM:            William J. Walker                          Sergeant at Arms  

DATE:            July 7, 2021  

SUBJECT:      Removal of Temporary Fencing Around Capitol Square  

Working with the United States Capitol Police (USCP) and Congressional stakeholders, the Capitol Police Board (Board) has concurred with USCP’s recommendation to make incremental modifications to the security posture of the Capitol Campus. 

Based on USCP’s assessment of the current threat environment and USCP’s enhanced coordination with District of Columbia, neighboring state and federal law enforcement partners, the Board supports USCP’s recommendation to remove the temporary fencing around Capitol Square. Removal is expected to begin as early as Friday, July 9th and conclude within three days, weather permitting.   

USCP will continue to monitor intelligence information and the associated threat environment. The Architect of the Capitol has the ability to and will expeditiously reinstall the temporary fencing should conditions warrant. 

Although the temporary fencing will be removed, current building access restrictions will remain in place. 

If you have further questions or have any concerns, please feel free to contact the Office of the Sergeant at Arms … 

So the fence should be down by next week at some point. 

A few important notes about Capitol security:

→ The $1.9 billion Capitol security spending bill that the House passed is stuck in the Senate. 

→ Speaker Nancy Pelosi does not seem eager to take the magnetometers outside the House floor down. Pelosi was asked about her timeline to remove them, and she summarily dismissed the question. 

→ Given the U.S. Capitol Police’s announcement that it will revamp its operations, we have to imagine that Yogananda Pittman, the acting chief, will be under pressure to testify soon. 

PUBLIC RECORDS ODDS AND ENDS

→ Terrific catch by Bloomberg’s Billy House and Anna Edgerton: “Pelosi’s Husband Locked In $5.3 Million From Alphabet Options”: “Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband, Paul Pelosi, won big on Alphabet Inc. stock and added bets on Amazon.com Inc. and Apple Inc. in the weeks leading up to the House Judiciary Committee’s vote on antitrust legislation that seeks to severely limit how these companies organize and offer their products.

“In a financial disclosure signed by Nancy Pelosi July 2, her husband reported exercising call options to acquire 4,000 shares of Alphabet, the parent company of Google, at a strike price of $1,200. The trade netted him a $4.8 million gain, and it’s risen to $5.3 million since then as the shares have jumped. … ‘The speaker has no involvement or prior knowledge of these transactions,’ her spokesman Drew Hammill said in an emailed statement on Wednesday, adding that Speaker Pelosi doesn’t own any stock.”

→ Retiring Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) gave $10,000 from his PAC to Sen. Richard Burr’s (R-N.C.) legal defense fund.

→ Goldman Sachs PAC is still not giving out political donations. They reported no expenditures in June. The finance giant paused its contributions after the Jan. 6 attacks.

BOOK WORLD

David Drucker is writing a future-of-the-GOP book

David Drucker of the Washington Examiner is someone we’ve all known for many years. Drucker is the kind of reporter who is in the Capitol all the time. In fact, he’s long been an upstairs-sitter in our press gallery — we’re all downstairs in the House Periodical Press room.

In other words, this is a guy who knows the GOP. 

His new book, “In Trump’s Shadow: The Battle for 2024 and the Future of the GOP,” will be released Oct. 19. Click on the link and pre-order it. 

Here’s a brief description from Javelin, which, of course, repped Drucker in his deal with Twelve.

"There are several books examining Donald Trump’s whirlwind presidency and historic 2020 reelection campaign. But what about what’s next? 

"In Trump’s Shadow by David Drucker tells the story about what’s next — for Trump, the Republican Party and ultimately the country — through the prism of the 2024 Republican presidential primary, an event already underway and already making major headlines. 

"Drucker will detail all the maneuverings and drama and has conducted hundreds of interviews with veteran Republican politicians, activists, strategists and operatives of all kinds He’s interviewed most if not all of the major GOP contenders culminating in hours of one-on-one conversation with Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago about 2024 and the future of the party.  

"In Trump’s Shadow offers a glimpse of possible futures for a GOP forever changed by Trump, revealing the contours of the unfolding battle for 2024: Exposing rivalries; unearthing secret preparations to succeed the 45th president that began as far back as January 2017; and taking the first hard look at how the events of January 6th, 2021, could impact the next big Republican campaign, and with it, the party’s future."

MOMENTS

10:15 a.m.: President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will meet with national security advisers about the drawdown in Afghanistan. 

11 a.m.: The Covid response team will brief reporters. 

12:30 p.m.: Jen Psaki will brief reporters.

1:10 p.m.: Harris will speak about voting rights at Howard University.

1:45 p.m.: Biden will speak about the drawdown in Afghanistan and continued aid to the Afghani military and Afghani people. 

3:30 p.m.: Biden and Harris will meet with civil rights leaders, including The Rev. Al Sharpton and NAACP President Derrick Johnson.

First Lady Jill Biden will travel to Savannah, Ga., to tour a vaccination site — Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) will appear with her. She’ll then fly to Orlando for the 2021 Scripps National Spelling Bee Finals.

CLIP FILE

AP

→ “Japan to declare virus emergency lasting through Olympics,” by Mary Yamaguchi

Axios

→ “Scoop: Tucker Carlson sought Putin interview at time of spying claim,” by Jonathan Swan

NYT

→ “Biden Weighs a Response to Ransomware Attacks,” by David Sanger and Nicole Perlroth: “President Biden emerged from a Situation Room meeting with his top cybersecurity advisers on Wednesday to declare that he ‘will deliver’ a response to President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia for the wave of ransomware attacks hitting American companies, after hearing a series of options about how he could disrupt the extortion efforts.

“Mr. Biden’s vague statement, delivered as he was departing for a trip, left it unclear whether he was planning another verbal warning to Mr. Putin — similar to the one he issued three weeks ago during a one-on-one summit in Geneva —  or would move ahead with more aggressive options to dismantle the infrastructure used by Russian-language criminal groups.

“Each option runs significant risk, because Russia is capable of escalating its own behavior. And as the ransomware deluge has shown, many companies in the private sector and federal and state government agencies remain rife with vulnerabilities that Russian actors can find and exploit.”

→ “In Michigan, Pro-Impeachment Republicans Face Voters’ Wrath,” by Jonathan Weisman in Grand Rapids, Mich.

→ “The Minneapolis Fed announces a vaccine requirement for employees,” by Coral Murphy Marcos

→ “Biden Insists He Can Do More With Less on the Economy,” by Jim Tankersley and Michael Shear

WaPo

→ “Trump charged Secret Service nearly $10,200 in May for agents’ rooms,” by David Fahrenthold

→ “Millions of Syrian civilians at grave risk if U.S., Russia fail to strike deal on U.N. aid deliveries,” by Kareem Fahim and Karen DeYoung with a Reyhanli, Turkey, dateline

WSJ

→ “States Target Google Play Store Practices in Antitrust Suit,” by Ryan Tracy and  Tripp Mickle

→ “WikiLeaks’ Julian Assange Wouldn’t Go to Supermax if Extradited, U.S. Says,” by Jason Douglas in London

Texas Tribune

→ “Allen West’s final days as state GOP chair filled with intraparty drama,” by Patrick Svitek: “Allen West’s final days as Texas GOP chairman are ending with an explosion of the kind of intraparty drama he has become known for throughout his tenure.

“On Wednesday, long-simmering tensions between West and the party’s vice chair, Cat Parks, boiled over as he called her a ‘cancer’ and ‘delusional and apparently deranged’ amid a dispute over a party committee project. Parks is a cancer survivor.

“A day earlier, a group of county party chairs called for West’s immediate removal as state party leader, alleging an “outrageous conflict of interest” given that he is now running for governor. West announced last month that he was stepping down as Texas GOP chair, but it is not effective until Sunday, when the State Republican Executive Committee is set to elect his successor.”

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Editorial photos provided by Getty Images