President Biden seemed to struggle during Thursday’s press conference and even got testy with a journalist who spoke to him about Afghanistan, which was the topic of the press conference.
Biden seemed to struggle when speaking about Americans that are kept in-prisoned overseas, moving Afghan interpreters, and speaking about the reasons that we went to Afghanistan.
WATCH:
This was Biden’s press conference today. Is he okay? pic.twitter.com/w58YW9nBtZ
— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) July 8, 2021
Biden also got testy with a journalist who asked if he has trust for the Taliban.
Q: "Mr President, do you trust the Taliban?"
Biden: "Is that a serious question"
Reporter: "Absolutely is a serious question"
Biden: "No I do not trust the Taliban"
Reporter: "Will you amplify your answer?"
Biden: "It's a silly question. Do I trust the Taliban. No" pic.twitter.com/TAMUazRUDr
— Mona Salama (@ByMonaSalama) July 8, 2021
PBS’ Amna Nawaz responded to Biden’s comments about the Taliban by saying: “The United States negotiated its pull out with the Taliban.”
During the conference Biden stated that American troops will be removed from Afghanistan by August 31 instead of the terribly-chosen September 11 date that Biden had previously set.
Earlier in the day, WH Press Secretary said there was no “mission accomplished” moment within Afghanistan while saying that the United States did not win the war there.
“We were not having a ‘mission accomplished’ time, in this regard. It is a 20-year war that was not won militarily,” Psaki stated.
“We’re not having a celebration,” Psaki said. “We are having a time where we think it’s in our best interest to bring our troops home, and we feel it is in our interest for Afghan forces to take the lead.”
Psaki said that the Biden White House would attempt a “political answer” and that the United States did “exactly what we set out to do.”
Biden also said that the withdraw was “proceeding in an orderly and secure way” and that it was going as fast as it could, which he said increased the “safety” of U.S. troops.
“The military mission within Afghanistan will keep going through the end of August,” Biden said. “We will keep personnel and capacities in the nation, and we are keeping the same authority which we have been operating. As I stated in April, the U.S. did what we set out to do in Afghanistan, to kill or capture the terrorists who launched the 911 attack, and give justice to Osama bin Laden, and to remove the terrorists and to keep Afghanistan from turning into a base from which terror attacks might be continued against the U.S. We met those objectives.”
Author: Scott Dowdy