Trump Calls on Biden to 'Resign in Disgrace' After 'Tragic Mess in Afghanistan'
Former President Donald Trump called on President Joe Biden to "resign in disgrace" after the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan Sunday.
"It is time for Joe Biden to resign in disgrace for what he has allowed to happen to Afghanistan, along with the tremendous surge in COVID, the Border catastrophe, the destruction of energy independence, and our crippled economy," Trump said in a statement.
He added, "It shouldn't be a big deal, because he wasn't elected legitimately in the first place."
Earlier Sunday, he issued another statement criticizing the Biden administration over the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan.
"What Joe Biden has done with Afghanistan is legendary," he said in the statement. "It will go down as one of the greatest defeats in American history!"
On Sunday, the Afghan military and government fell to the Taliban as insurgent forces entered the capital Kabul after seizing power across the country in just over a week.
The capital was the last major government stronghold. As the Taliban insurgents entered the city, U.S. personnel and Afghan citizens descended on the airport to leave the nation. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani fled to Tajikistan on Sunday.
The Taliban are expected to announce the renaming of the country to the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan from the presidential palace.
The decision to withdraw troops from Afghanistan was first made by the Trump administration, but it was initiated by Biden, who announced last month that all troops would be pulled by August 31.
Both Republicans and Democrats have expressed concern over the handling of the troop withdrawal.
South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham slammed Biden Sunday, saying the president "seems oblivious to the terrorist threats that will come from a Taliban-run Afghanistan."
Representative Debbie Dingell, a Democrat and staunch White House ally, said on MSNBC that the fall of Kabul reminded her of Saigon in 1975. "It does feel like the fall of Saigon today, I'm not going to lie," she said.
Retired Army General David Petraeus called the collapse of Afghanistan "catastrophic" for the U.S. and the rest of the world.
Biden on Saturday defended his decision, saying that "an endless American presence in the middle of another country's civil conflict was not acceptable" to him.
In the same statement, Biden criticized Trump for cutting a deal with the Taliban that he said left them "in the strongest position militarily since 2001," pulling 2,500 troops before he left office and imposing a May 1, 2021 deadline for withdrawing U.S. forces.
"When I became President, I faced a choice—follow through on the deal, with a brief extension to get our Forces and our allies' Forces out safely, or ramp up our presence and send more American troops to fight once again in another country's civil conflict," Biden said in the statement.
Biden also said he would send in 5,000 U.S. troops to help U.S. personnel and allies safely evacuate.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on CNN Sunday the Taliban have been told there will be "a swift and decisive response" if they interfere in the evacuation of Americans.
Trump attacked the situation as a "tragic mess" in a statement on Friday, adding, "Do you miss me yet?"
This is a breaking news story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
