Whether justified or not, Joe Biden is paying the bill for 20 years of US policy in Afghanistan. In the face of the Taliban express offensive and the collapse of the Afghan security forces, the whole world has witnessed the images of panic at Kabul airport. And if the evacuations ended up being organized as best they could, Joe Biden fell back sharply in the polls. With, for the first time in his term, as many Americans satisfied by his policy as dissatisfied. One minus ago, his popularity rating was +9.
Big air hole for Joe Biden in the polls with the crisis in Afghanistan: in one month, he went from + 9pts of favorable opinions to 0, with for the first time in his mandate, as many satisfied as dissatisfied. pic.twitter.com/LmbV1KQwrt
– Philippe Berry (@ptiberry) August 23, 2021
Even though the withdrawal of American troops was negotiated by Donald Trump, three in four Americans criticize the management of the Biden administration, according to a poll released by CBS this weekend. Asked about these figures, the tenant of the White House just laughed on Sunday. “I think when this is all over the Americans will clearly understand what I did,” he said. “It’s my job,” he told reporters. “My job is to make decisions that no one else can or wants to make. “
Questions about August 31
Joe Biden is in a race against the clock against the deadline for a final withdrawal of US troops supposed to be completed on August 31, but which could be delayed to continue the evacuation of tens of thousands of Afghans. While London and Paris demand an extension of the presence of the last American soldiers, Joe Biden seems to leave the door ajar. “We hope that we don’t have to prolong,” he said while adding: “There will be discussions, I think. “
On Monday, the Taliban warned that August 31 was a red line, and that there would be “consequences” if the “occupation” continued.
“A capitulation”, according to Donald Trump
In Washington, Republicans – but also the media – have harshly judged the apparent lack of preparation for “foreseeable disaster” and “tragic chaos”. The Biden administration “delivered, as was predictable, an entire country to terrorists”, thundered in particular the leader of the Republicans in the House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy. In an electoral rally in Alabama, Donald Trump added a layer: “The failed withdrawal from Afghanistan is the illustration of the most serious incompetence of a leader of our country, perhaps in history. It was not a withdrawal, it was a surrender. “
Absent from the media in the first days of the crisis, Joe Biden is trying to straighten things out. In addition to daily Pentagon updates, the US president now regularly faces journalists. On Monday, the White House communication stressed that since August 14, 37,000 people had been evacuated from Afghanistan. On Sunday alone, around thirty US military planes evacuated 10,400 people, to which are added 5,900 evacuations via 61 coalition aircraft. But for Joe Biden – and for the Afghans – the damage is already done.