Originally Posted by
Blackfriar
But the Nuremburg trials showed that "I was only following orders" is not a defence. Sleepy Joe is not ordering death camps but there must be a time when the troops have to say no.
Sleepy Joe:
"End this war by 31 August so we don't get back into a shooting war with the Taliban."
Generals: "
No, sorry, we left the withdrawal planning too late (even though we've had a year to prepare) and it's a bit risky to do it now, so we're just going to stay and let the ANDSF keep doing all the dying. Don't believe those reports from dissenting analysts and SIGAR about corruption, the unsustainability of the ANDSF, the near-total Taliban control of rural areas, and the refusal of either Afghan party to agree terms: those guys have been saying that stuff for 15 years, they're so naive about DC and politics and foreign policy, they don't get it. Just ignore them like we all do."
Would you be OK with that? Ironically that's pretty much what seems to have happened, except that Sleepy Joe called the generals' bluff:
Sleepy Joe: "
What part of 'end this war by 31 August' do you guys still not understand?"
Generals:
(Oh, ****, he's serious) "Ermm, here's a really crappy withdrawal plan that we've just made up, we could do this if you really want but it'd be much better if you send x thousand more troops and extend the deadline so we can do it better; the Taliban aren't anywhere near in a position to enforce their end of the Doha deal." (Fingers crossed...)
Sleepy Joe:
"I've been very clear: just get us out, already. SecDef knows a thing or two about the CENTCOM AOR, or at least he should, so I'm going on holiday. Bye."
Generals:
F*ck.
There's a need for accountability here, for sure, but it ain't with Sleepy Joe.