NEVER FORGET: It's Been a Year Since Biden's Botched Afghanistan Withdrawal

It’s hard to believe that it’s been a year since Joe Biden’s botched withdrawal from Afghanistan. This event will live in infamy as a turning point in Joe Biden’s young presidency and America’s retreat in the War on Terror… all done in the hopes of getting a 9/11 20th anniversary photo op.

Biden was so desperate for this photo op that he spent weeks covering up the deteriorating situation in Afghanistan and even pressured Afghan President Ashraf Ghani to lie about conditions on the ground so that he could look good while withdrawing from the country.

“I need not tell you the perception around the world and in parts of Afghanistan, I believe, is that things are not going well in terms of the fight against the Taliban,” Biden told Ghani. “And there is a need, whether it is true or not, there is a need to project a different picture.”

Joe Biden was so desperate for that photo op that he set an arbitrary date for withdrawing from Afghanistan without any conditions for the Taliban, causing a chaotic evacuation that left 13 U.S. service members dead.

And the lying never stopped. After the botched withdrawal, his administration desperately tried to minimize the public relations disaster it caused, so it deceived the public about how many Americans were left behind when the evacuation was complete. “Now we believe that about 100 to 200 Americans remain in Afghanistan with some intention to leave,” Biden said on Aug. 31. “Most of those who remain are dual citizens, long-time residents who had earlier decided to stay because of their family roots in Afghanistan.”

But that number was a lie. Months later, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee released a report showing that as many as 9,000 Americans were left in Afghanistan. This wasn’t a case of incompetence. The Biden administration didn’t suddenly find thousands of previously unknown Americans still in the Taliban-controlled country. They knew, but they told the nation a different story to minimize the damage to Biden’s approval ratings.

Biden’s incompetence did more than just hurt his approval ratings. He obliterated years of sacrifice of blood and treasure in Afghanistan. Weeks ago, al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri was killed in Afghanistan, and Joe Biden celebrated the news as a success, which it was, but it was also proof that his botched withdrawal enabled the country to become a safe haven for terrorists once again.

It’s been a year, but don’t hold your breath waiting for Joe Biden to acknowledge it. He’d just as soon have us all forget what he did—the lies, the cover-up, the brave American servicemembers who died because of his decision. He’ll invoke his late son Beau repeatedly but won’t say the names of those who died because of his incompetence.

Well, let’s not forget who they are. Here are their names:

• Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Darin T. Hoover, 31, of Salt Lake City, Utah
• Marine Corps Sgt. Johanny Rosariopichardo, 25, of Lawrence, Massachusetts
• Marine Corps Sgt. Nicole L. Gee, 23, of Sacramento, California
• Marine Corps Cpl. Hunter Lopez, 22, of Indio, California
• Marine Corps Cpl. Daegan W. Page, 23, of Omaha, Nebraska
• Marine Corps Cpl. Humberto A. Sanchez, 22, of Logansport, Indiana
• Marine Corps Lance Cpl. David L. Espinoza, 20, of Rio Bravo, Texas
• Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Jared M. Schmitz, 20, of St. Charles, Missouri
• Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Rylee J. McCollum, 20, of Jackson, Wyoming
• Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Dylan R. Merola, 20, of Rancho Cucamonga, California
• Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Kareem M. Nikoui, 20, of Norco, California
• Navy Hospitalman Maxton W. Soviak, 22, of Berlin Heights, Ohio
• Army Staff Sgt. Ryan C. Knauss, 23, of Corryton, Tennessee.