Sometimes I think the U.S. Intelligence Community and the U.S. military's leaders are not nearly as good as they think they are. As the philosopher queried: "When was the last time you bitches won a war?"*
Via Olivia Gazis, CBS News Intelligence & National Security Reporter:
Senior U.S. intelligence official: “We have noted the troubling trend lines in Afghanistan for some time […]
— Olivia Gazis (@Olivia_Gazis) August 15, 2021
Strategically, a rapid Taliban takeover was always a possibility…and tactical conditions on the ground can often evolve quickly.”
Full statement: pic.twitter.com/Rlhj2BMa2B
*As part of the answer to that question we've already stipulated to Grenada.
And no, I'm not saying Afghanistan was "winnable", just that when you are making a "retrograde movement" as General Milley put it, you might want to plan for some 8th century jihadis coming into possession of a few billion dollars worth of your tools-for-killing.
