Good morning from Washington, where President Biden ponders his options in the wake of terrorist attacks that leave 13 American service members dead in Kabul, Afghanistan. Fred Lucas reports. The president’s lousy instincts led to this debacle, David Harsanyi argues. On the podcast, Virginia Allen finds out why a husband-and-wife team urges conservatives and Christians to help transform pop culture. Plus: what China may get out of the Taliban; how liberal Oregon leaves too many students behind; and Harvard hires an atheist as chaplain. Forty-five years ago today, the U.S. Tennis Association bars transgender pioneer Renée Richards—born Richard Raskind—from competing in the U.S. Open as a woman.
“The Biden administration has created a massive hostage situation,” says Heritage Foundation’s Jim Phillips. “Even if the Taliban doesn’t take hostages, they will not do a lot to protect the Americans...
President Biden has never shown a morsel of wisdom or proficiency on foreign policy. As one former Obama Pentagon official put it, Biden isn't really a student of history; he is driven by "gut instincts."
What China gains in light of the catastrophic American failure in Afghanistan is a wonderful opportunity to highlight American unreliability and fecklessness.