63% Think The Biden Administration Bungled The Afghan Withdrawal: Golden/TIPP Poll

Nearly two-thirds (63%) believe that how the Biden Administration executed the withdrawal from Afghanistan was a mistake.

The Golden/TIPP Poll completed on Friday asked 1,300 Americans nationwide, "Please indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with the statement: The way the Biden Administration executed the withdrawal from Afghanistan was a mistake."  The results read as follows:

• 41% agree strongly,
• 23% agree somewhat,
• 14% disagree somewhat,
• 14% disagree strongly, and
• 9% not sure.

James Golden, host of "The Bo Snerdley Show" on 77-WABC/New York, and TIPP have joined forces to produce ongoing polling under the Golden/TIPP banner.  The polls will gauge Americans' opinions on policy issues and provide original content for the radio show.

President Biden had promised that the U.S. withdrawal would be in a safe and orderly manner.

The agreement that the manner we withdrew was a disaster was nearly unanimous across party lines and ideologies. All but two of the 36 demographic categories we analyzed had a net difference (percent agree minus percent disagree) greater than 20 points.

The events proved that the Biden administration had underestimated the task and did not anticipate worst-case scenarios.

Was it an intelligence failure?  Was it sheer incompetence?

The withdrawal was sloppy and disorganized, and events on the ground moved faster than the administration could regain control, putting it on the defensive.  It was not what one would expect of the world's superpower.

For example, there were about 650 U.S. troops in Afghanistan in early August 2021.  As the Taliban advanced, the administration increased its troop commitment to 5,000 on August 14.  With the fall of Kabul on August 15, it added another 1,000 troops.

Twenty years of hard work evaporated in twenty hours.

Among the withdrawal's low points:

• The Kabul airport attack came just five days before the Biden administration's deadline for complete military withdrawal. It was the deadliest day for U.S. forces in Afghanistan since 2011 when 13 service members and more than 100 people lost their lives. It was the worst day for American foreign policy.
• Even though the troop withdrawal is complete, as of today, nearly 200 Americans and thousands of allies are still stranded in Afghanistan and are struggling to leave. The White House estimated about 100 Americans remained in Afghanistan as of Sunday.
• The Taliban now controls a large portion of the military equipment provided by the United States to the Afghan military, valued at $76 billion in weaponry such as aircraft, armored vehicles, and guns.
• The birth of ISIS-K, which is now a part of our lexicon.

A picture is worth a thousand words. The sight of people running alongside a U.S. Air Force C-17 transport plane taxiing down a runway at Kabul International Airport epitomized the withdrawal's chaos.  It will live on in our memories for decades to come.

TIPP Takes

Taliban Say They 'Desire' To Join China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Projects

The Taliban have stated their 'desire' to participate in China-Pakistan Economic Corridor projects.

On Monday, Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid stated that the group "wishes" to join the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Mujahid also confirmed an upcoming meeting between Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Chief Lt General Faiz Hameed and Taliban senior leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar.

In 2015, China announced the 'China Pakistan Economic Corridor' (CPEC) project worth USD 46 billion.

With CPEC, Beijing aims to expand its influence in Pakistan and across Central and South Asia to counter the influence of the U.S. and India.

The CPEC would link Pakistan's southern Gwadar port on the Arabian Sea to China's western Xinjiang region. It also includes plans to create road, rail, and oil pipeline links to improve connectivity between China and the Middle East.

Final Piece Of Nord Stream 2 In Place, Operator Says

The last section of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline has been welded into place, which means the two long stretches of pipe can now be joined to complete the Baltic subsea link.

The $11 billion pipeline, which will double Russian gas exporter Gazprom's capacity via the Baltic Sea, has been met with opposition from the United States, Ukraine, and others concerned about Europe's increasing reliance on Russian energy imports.

The project also allows Russia to avoid piping gas to Europe through Ukraine, denying Kyiv transit fees.

Certification is expected to take up to four months but will not begin until all paperwork, including checks by the German economy ministry and Gazprom, is completed.

China Announces Border 'Cooperation' Zone in Macau, Eyes High-End Chip Development

The ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has unveiled plans for a semiconductor research and development base to be jointly administered by authorities in the southern province of Guangdong and the former Portuguese city of Macau, paving the way for the two jurisdictions' borders to blur.

The process will begin with creating a "cooperation zone" on the Macau side of Hengqin Island, which will be jointly administered by Guangdong and Macau and will include a CCP, police, state security police, and government presence.

The zone's goal is to accelerate the development of semiconductor chip designs and other high-tech research and development projects such as new energy, big data, artificial intelligence, and biomedical industries.

Singapore To Allow Return Of Boeing 737 Max

Singapore's aviation regulator has lifted the operational ban on Boeing's 737 Max that was imposed more than two years ago, leaving China as the only major market where regulators are yet to give the plane the green light.

Singapore based its approval on operators, including Singapore Airlines Ltd, complying with airworthiness directives and additional flight crew training requirements.

The 737 Max was grounded worldwide in March 2019, following two fatal crashes. The approval for its return comes months after the model returned to service in the U.S. and Europe and follows the more recent lifting of grounding orders in other countries, including Australia, Fiji, Japan, India, and Malaysia.