After observing the botched troop departure from Afghanistan, Sen. Lindsey Graham claimed President Joe Biden had "blood on his hands," and that he would never forgive the man he has known for decades.
During their time in the Senate, Graham and Biden developed a bond. Despite battling during the presidential campaign, when Trump read aloud Graham's cell phone number during campaign rallies, Graham would eventually become a friend and ally of President Donald Trump.
Graham says Biden's US troop withdrawal in Afghanistan is "unforgivable"
He told Fox News on Wednesday that Biden's pullout policy was unforgivable, claiming that it left Americans still attempting to flee the country and included a terror attack on forces defending the Kabul airport.
He slammed Biden's decision to pull all troops out of the country. Although several top military officers pushed him to preserve a force presence, Biden did so after extending a departure timetable established with the Trump administration.
Graham's rebuke was simply the latest episode in a long-running soap opera about his relationships with presidents. During the 2016 campaign, he dubbed Trump a "jackass" who "shouldn't be commander in chief" and a "race-baiting, xenophobic bigot," as per Daily Mail.
The senator became one of Trump's most trusted advisers, golfing with him regularly during his presidency. He is accused of attempting to have a Georgia election official discard mail-in votes in counties that voted for Biden after the election, and he parroted some of Trump's charges of election fraud.
After the fall of the American-backed government in Kabul and the Taliban retook control of the nation, Biden was chastised for withdrawing the US soldiers.
Biden visits Arlington National Cemetery
The killing of 13 US military members in a terrorist assault in August, as well as chaotic scenes outside Kabul's airport, have added to the scrutiny of Biden, who has adamantly maintained his choice to end America's longest war.
Graham claimed he had always pushed maintaining a military presence "in the backyard of our enemy so they don't come to our backyard," and that ex-President Donald Trump's troop reduction to 2,500 "was enough to hold the place together."
On Thursday, President Joe Biden attended a ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier to commemorate the United States' absence from war for the first time in 20 years.
Per NBC News, Biden told the crowd of more than 600 people at the Memorial Amphitheater that soldiers had "undergone difficulties most Americans will never know" and promised to fight with Congress to ensure that veterans receive the "world-class benefits that they have earned."
One of Biden's key concerns, he added, is ensuring that veterans receive health benefits, particularly mental health treatment. He urged suffering veterans to "reach out," and vowed to fight to prevent military and veteran suicides.
The Biden administration is set to launch several initiatives geared at assisting veterans who were exposed to burn pits and other contaminants while serving overseas. Biden said in his address Thursday that the government needs to be more "nimble" in reacting to individuals exposed to burn pits and agent orange. Biden believes his son Beau died of cancer connected to exposure to burn pits during his tour to Iraq.
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