Defiant defense of the operation denying it could have been handled better, insisting, and im quoting him now, i dont think it was a failure. This as the taliban is now using gunfire and whips to block potential evacuees from reaching the Kabul Airport. The pentagon is acknowledging security has rapidly degraded, but americas top general insists nothing indicated the country would collapse in only 11 days. Our correspondents are standing by in afghanistan, here in the United States. First, lets go to chief national Affairs Correspondent Jeff Zeleny over at the white house. First of all, tell us about this new biden interview. What is the president saying . President biden is saying for the first time that he is going to be slightly flexible on that August 31st selfimposed deadline. If all americans are not evacuated from afghanistan. But he was less clear what the time frame would be for the afghan nationals. All of the afghanistan citizens who helped the u. S. Forces over the last 20 years or so. He made these comments in a new interview with George Stephanopoulos of abc news. The first time the president has gone deep into the afghanistan situation since the Taliban Takeover. Lets watch. All troops are supposed to be out by August 31st. Even if americans and our afghan allies are still trying to get out, theyre going to leave . Were going to do everything in our power to get all americans out and our allies out. Does that mean troops will stay beyond August 31st if necessary . Depends on where we are and whether we can get ramp these numbers Up To 5,000 to 7,000 a day coming out. If thats the case, theyll all be out. Because weve got like 10,000 to 15,000 americans in the country right now, right . And are you committed to making sure that the troops stay until every american who wants to be out yes. Gets out . Yes. How about afghan allies . We have about 80,000 people on well, thats how high . Somewhere between 50,000 and 65,000 folks total, counting their families. Does the Commitment Hold for them as well . The Commitment Holds to get everyone out that, in fact, we can get out and everyone that should come out. And thats the objective. Thats what were doing now. Thats the path were on and i think well get. So americans should understand that troops may have to be there beyond August 31st. Americans should understand that were going to try to get it done before August 31st. But if we dont if we dont, well determine at the time who is left. And . And, if there are american if theres american citizens left, were going to stay until we get them all out. So, of course, one central question hanging over all of this is, is the u. S. Military going to be able to move beyond kabul to get to either american citizens or afghan nationals out, back to the Kabul Airport . That was left unanswered. President biden also striking a defiant and defensive tone once again about this entire operation. He said that the chaos that weve all seen unfold this week in afghanistan was actually inevitable. When you look at whats happened over the last week, was it a failure of intelligence, planning, Execution Or Judgment . Look, i dont think it was it was a simple choice, george. When the taliban let me put it another way. When you had the government of afghanistan, the leader of that government get on a plane and taking off and going to another country. When you saw the significant collapse of the afghan troops we had trained, Up To 300,000 of them, just leaving their equipment and taking off, that was, you know, im not thats what happened. Thats simply what happened. Weve all seen the pictures. The hundreds of people packed into a c17. Weve seen afghans that was four days ago, five days ago. What did you think when you first saw those pictures . What i thought was, we have to gain control of this. We have to move this more quickly. We have to move in a way which we can take control of that airport. And we did. So you dont think this could have been handled better in any way . No mistakes . No, i dont think it could have been handled in a way that were going to go back in Hindsight And Look but the idea that somehow there is a way to have gotten out without chaos ensuing, i dont know how that happens. I dont know how that happens. So for you that was always priced into the decision . Yes. Wolf, that stands in stark contrast to what President Biden said with his own words just a month ago here at the white house. When he talked about the reasoning and the timeline for withdrawing troops from afghanistan. So those words said here this afternoon must be viewed through the lens of what the president said on July 8th when he said that Safety And Security would happen in afghanistan. Lets watch those comments. The Military Mission in afghanistan will conclude on August 31st. The drawdown is proceeding in a secure and orderly way prioritizing the safety of our troops as they depart. The likelihood theres going to be the Taliban Overrunning Everything and owning the whole country is highly unlikely. So the bottom line here is framed in both of those conversations. Both of those sentiments from the president. That is what democrats on Capitol Hill want to get to the bottom of. What happened . How was this administration caught so blindsided and flatfooted by the rise of the taliban . It also has led to really an extraordinary questions of Competence And Credibility of this administrations Foreign Policy. Of course, this president is someone who ran on his Foreign Policy strength, his relationships with allies. All of those have been put in question because of the crisis in afghanistan. But again, we did not see President Biden give an inch on that today saying in his words, it was not a failure. Yeah, his precise words indeed. I dont think it was a failure. Jeff zeleny, stand by. Right now, i want to go live to afghanistan. Our chief international Correspondent Clarissa Ward who is doing an amazing job for us. Continues to report on whats happening on the ground in kabul. Clarissa, youre there in kabul. First of all, whats your reaction to what we just heard from the president of the United States . Well, i think my reaction is less important than what i would imagine the reaction will be of many afghan people, which is, if this isnt a failure, then what is . Because the scenes that we have been seeing throughout the day, the desperation, the complete chaos, Shots Being fired, Tear Gas, the nightmare that has become many afghan peoples living reality is ongoing. And there isnt an end in sight. I do think that afghan people will also latch on to that sort of glimmer of a commitment that we heard there, that i believe he said 50 to 60,000 was the total that he thought of afghan nationals who have worked closely with the u. S. , that there was a commitment to ensure that they would be safely taken or given safe passage out of the country. But again, theres still so many questions as to how that happens and whats the timeline . You heard him say very clearly that u. S. Troops might stay a bit longer if all the americans in this Country Havent left yet. But didnt really explain what happens to those Tens Of Thousands of afghans who are basically nou camped outside the Airport Waiting for clarity on their situation, wolf. Its amazing whats going on right now. Were obviously hearing the president speak about it in this unique way. You are there on the streets. Right near the airport. And you were there earlier in the day. You met you were met by menacing Taliban Fighters. It was a really scary moment you were seeing Fear And Chaos and violence firsthand. Tell our viewers about that. Well, the irony is the u. S. Had first said there would be safe passage to the airport. Okay, that clearly hasnt happened. And today when we went to the airport, there were far fewer people than there had been in previous days. So you can imagine how chaotic it was in the days running Up To today. But still, you have this insane situation where the u. S. Are controlling the perimeter of the airport. Theyve been firing out shots. Theyve been firing out Tear Gas to try to push back the crowds. And then you have the taliban who are managing sort of checkpoints around the airport. And let me tell you, their methods of Crowd Control are downright scary. So for any ordinary afghan, frankly, any ordinary person from any country, you really are faced with a very dicey and intimidating situation to try to get into that airport. And we went there to try to give our audience a sense of what it looks like. Americas last foothold in afghanistan is now guarded by the taliban. The taliban are all over. They wont allow anyone. Reporter weve come to kabuls airport to see the gauntlet people must pass through to fly out. You can hear gunshots every couple of minutes. Cnn, cnn. Reporter quickly, we are accosted by an angry taliban fighter. Can i ask you a question . Excuse me cover my face . Cover. Cover my face . Okay. What is this . What is that . He told me to cover my face. But he doesnt want to comment on that hes carrying. The chaotic scenes are the fault of america. The cause of all of this is america in afghanistan. Look at these people, he says. Americas really acting unfairly towards them. Why are they lying and telling them that they can go to america . Why dont they let them stay and help their country . Doesnt want to talk to me. Ed all right. We keep walking to avoid confrontation. A man follows us asking for advice. How you can enter the base . Yes. They are saying do you have paperwork to enter . Yes. Show me your paperwork. Was this an italian company . Yes, italian company. I dont want to discuss it with you. Others crowd around us to show their documents. You were a translator . Yeah. See this . Yes. You are saying they all worked at american camps as translators for the americans. And they cant get into that airport. These Taliban Fighters are a little upset with us. Lets keep going. We decide to leave and head for our car. The fighter takes the safety off his ak47 and pushes through the crowd. Stay behind him. Stay behind him. You can see the Taliban Fighters are just hopped up on adrenaline or i dont know what. Its a very dicey situation. Suddenly, two other taliban charge towards us. You can see their Rifle Butt raised to strike the Producer Brent swales. When the fighters are told we have permission to report, they lower their weapons and let us pass. Okay. Now were going. Get in the car. Wolf, i do want to say that while the scenes at the airport have been very chaotic and very disturbing as you saw there, the rest of the city is surprisingly calm. The taliban understands that the world is watching. They want to get this right. They want to provide law and order. And so we definitely saw a lot of cars on the street. A lot of shops open. A semblance of normalcy returning to life. But that, of course, is all in jeopardy essentially by whats happening at the airport because it is so tense and just like a Powder Keg that could blow up at any moment if the situation devolves any further, wolf. Certainly could. Clarissa, stand by. I want to get back to you. Right now, i want to go to our Pentagon Correspondent Barbara Starr. The u. S. Military alluded to staying past the August 31st deadline, but has not said that outright. Unlike the president of the United States who just suggested, if necessary, the u. S. Troops will remain on the ground beyond the end of this month, which has been the deadline. Is that correct . Absolutely correct, wolf. According to President Biden, this appears to be very much under discussion. Now in the 3 00 hour, we had a Press Conference with Defense Secretary Lloyd austin, general Mark Milley. General milley talked about getting every american out of afghanistan who wants to leave. And that is a check we dont know that they can cash to use an expression. There are americans in kabul who cannot get to the airport, even though the pentagon says the taliban are letting them through the checkpoint. There are americans around the country who may not be able to get on the roads and get past checkpoints out in the rural areas to even get to the capital city. But it looks at this point like that may be part of the reason General Milley put that out on the table earlier today here at the pentagon. President biden also endorsing that idea. They are going to have to get taliban permission, acquiescence . Not very clear how the taliban would react to this. We know military leaders in afghanistan are talking to the taliban. Were told the talks are about deconfliction. Pentagon jargon that can mean a whole lot of things but basically trying to sort out who does what and reduce the violence and let people through. Negotiations with the taliban. That in itself is remarkable but theyll have to come to some agreement if u. S. Troops are to stay and the taliban promised not to challenge them. And you believe taliban promises, wolf. Its interesting, barbara, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs Of Staff general Mark Milley acknowledging there was a major Intelligence Blunder that the u. S. Military was caught completely off guard by the speed at which the entire country of afghanistan, the military, the political leadership, simply collapsed. Tell us about that. It was a remarkable moment from General Milley. Very candid that they simply they had a lot of intelligence scenarios. A lot of ideas about what could happen. But this was not one of them. Listen to what he had to say. The time frame of a rapid collapse, that was widely estimated and ranged from weeks to months and even years following our departure. There was nothing that i or anyone else saw that indicated a collapse of this army and this government in 11 days. So you can bet there are going to be months if not years, of questions to the military leadership, to the pentagon, about how they missed all of this and how on earth it could have happened with nobody noticing. A major, major u. S. Intelligence blunder. Barbara starr at the pentagon, thank you. Lets bring back Clarissa Ward on the scene in kabul with our chief political Correspondent Dana Bash is with us, retired major general, Spider Marks and our national Security Analyst Peter bergen is with us. The author of an important Brandnew Book the Rise And Fall of osama bin laden. Dana, President Biden seemed to try and argue this wasnt a failure before taking a second stab at the question but he still is arguing this chaos was unavoidable. Whats your reaction when you heard . Its a different point of view, and a different message than the one we heard from him just a day and a half ago, which was much more, to borrow a term, straight talk. Much more making the point that would level with the american people say, i dont have any regrets and this was unavoidable . The two f contradict one another. And the fact is, as barbara said, this is going to be looked at for weeks, months, years as to what actually went wrong. But a lot went wrong. And just looking at the pictures and seeing whats happening and seeing the look on the face of the chairman of the joint chiefs, that in and of itself speaks A Thousand words. And so he came across as a bit more defensive than i would have thought given how we saw him sort of try to guide the country just a couple of days ago. And the taliban has taken control of the entire country. The military fell apart. Political leadership escaped in only 11 days. That sounds like a total failure to me. General marks, the president is now admitting the u. S. Withdrawal deadline could slide if they cant evacuate all americans by August 31st. So this deadline is apparently no longer a real deadline, is it . I think its fair to say when the president said that everybody would be out or at least the operation would be terminated by 8 31, that was Pr Done is wisely established some conditions. This was not conditions based initially. This was a hard date and the United States was going to be gone, at least wrapped up an operation and gone by the 31st. Hes now stated quite frankly, we have a mission to accomplish. We have priorities for departures. Well address each one of those priorities. If were not complete by a date certain well push that date out. Thats a good thing. It certainly allows the planners, and we know that any plan once it reaches contact with the enemy or the conditions, its going to change. This is a changing plan, and thats a good thing. Peter, does it raise red flags, and youve studied afghanistan now for decades. Does it raise red flags to hear that the United States is now dependent on the taliban to evacuate people safely . The taliban, you know, they want to they dont want to complicate the fact they just took power. They dont want to antagonize us. I want to address something that came up in the Milley Conversation which is the oldest trick in the washington, d. C. , playbook is to dress up a Policy Failure as an intelligence failure. In fact, the intelligence reported by Barbara Starr was that the taliban could fall in 30 to 90 days. And that was about two weeks ago, i would say. So, you know, that Intelligence Assessment Wasnt completely off. And really the big problem was we announced we were leaving in april, the biden administration, and then again in july, and the taliban read the understand the media. And they had a plan. And so i think to blame the Intelligence Community for a Policy Failure is fairly typical Washington Play but not actually what happened here. Clarissa, youre there in afghanistan. Were already seeing signs the taliban is cracking down Big Time on protesters. Not only around the airport but elsewhere. Do you expect this new regime to show more brutal side as the u. S. Evacuation continues and god only knows whats going to happen after the u. S. Evacuation is complete. I think its pretty inevitable well see a tightening of controls. You mentioned today at that protest in jalalabad a bunch of people took to the streets. They pulled down a taliban flag. They put up the afghan flag. Taliban fighters then started firing on the crowd. And thats probably just a taste of what may be to come. This moment, as peter said, the taliban knows they need to get this right. They want to get the u. S. Out. They want to have the World Kind of sort of have a sigh of Relief And Sort of a transition of power. They want to be vaguely accepted. But in the mid to long term, the expectation from most people on the ground is that absolutely, they will begin to implement their draconian version of sharia law. And i should just say that was always understood. Despite the best efforts of the taliban to sort of rebrand themselves as a more moderate political force, i dont think anyone who was participating in the Peace Talks is naive enough to imagine that they were going to somehow become progressive, okay . It was always, i think, understood that they would probably resort to this kind of behavior. Clarissa, stand by. Everyone stand by. I want to bring in republican Congressman Peter Meyer of michigan, a member of the foreign relations committee. Thanks for joining us. I know you served in iraq, later worked in afghanistan for an ngo based in kandahar. You know the challenges there. But do you accept the argument from President Biden that this wasnt a failure, this withdrawal, that the chaos were seeing now was simply the price the u. S. Had to pay in order to withdraw after 20 years of warfare there . I dont accept it. There certainly was never going to be a positive outcome. But we could have prevented it becoming this Nightmare Scenario. The thing that we really missed was in the mid to late july and early august the degree of local Level Negotiations, regional Level Negotiations between power brokers, between warlords and the taliban companions. Everyone was looking for their own skin. And as a result, that moved up, accelerated greatly the Taliban Takeover and led us to being completely overwhelmed by the timeline. Youve heard the Breaking News. President biden now hinting that the u. S. Could stay in afghanistan with military force longer than the August 31st deadline. If americans still need to be evacuated, should u. S. Troops stay on the ground until every american is evacuated . Absolutely. I think ive been long troubled by this August 31st deadline over the past several days. Its 12 days away. We still have thousands of americans and Tens Of Thousands of loyal afghan allies we havent gotten to. And if we leave, we abandon them, we lose all control and the situation could spiral even worse. After nearly two decades of war, did you ever think, congressman, youd see a situation where the United States would be forced to rely on the taliban the taliban to try and evacuate people from the country . You know, if you would have said this was happening or where we are today if you would have said that a month ago, you wouldnt have been believed. But we had dozens of members of congress, a bipartisan group urging the biden administration going back to april to speed up this special visa process. They failed to heed our calls. They said the Nightmare Scenario wouldnt come to pass. Its so disappointing we saw that over the weekend what we all feared. We had time. We lost months, and this is here we are. Thanks for your service once again, congressman and thanks for joining us. Congressman peter meijer. Appreciate it very much. And were going to stay on top of whats going on in afghanistan, but theres also other Breaking News were following. President biden speaking out about his administrations new recommendation that vaccinated adults could receive a booster, a covid Booster Shot and receive it soon. We have details of who should get one and when. Lots of news when we come back. 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Come on Print Print Print do you suffer from Cartridge Conniptions . Be conniptionfree, thanks to the Cartridgefree Epson Ecotank printer. A ridiculous amount of ink do i look like a Money Tree . The epson ecotank. Just fill chill. Were following a truly chaotic situation unfolding in afghanistan. And President Bidens defiant defense of the u. S. Withdrawal as thousands of americans remain stranded in that country right now. Theres also breaking Pandemic News that were following. President biden saying just a little while ago that the Booster Shots are the best way to protect americans from the covid19 delta variant. This comes just hours after his administration announced that people will be eligible for a third Vaccine Dose starting next month based on when they received their second dose. Cnn national correspondent Athena Jones has the very latest. The time to lay out a plan for covid19 boosters is noww c cases ana booster eight months after their second dose of the Pfizer Or Moderna vaccines. Presenting data suggesting waning immunity over time. This will boost your immune response. It will increase your protection from covid19. Thats the best way to protect ourselves from new variants that could arise. Reporter booster doses still must be approved by the fda, which is still reviewing the data. But experts warn boosters is not going to end this pandemic. Whats going to end this pandemic is finding a way to motivate the 30 , 40 of people in this country who havent gotten any vaccines yet. Reporter its the unvaccinated that have hospitals around the country stressed. In the five hardest hit states, Intensive Care Units are more than 90 full. Alabama reporting it is out of icu beds. Its really just a Domino Effect that then clogs up our e. R. S, clogs up everything else. Reporter with more than 121,000 new Child Covid cases reported in the u. S. Last week, texas and florida lead the nation in new pediatric cases. While in mississippi, a 13yearold died just one day after testing positive for covid. The child went to the hospital but they sent her home the same evening knowing she was sick. They should have sent her to a hospital to get her some help. Reporter but the debate over masking in schools rages on. Schools in Broward County Florida instituting mask mandates as students return to class today. In defiance of governor ron desantis. The State Board of Education Voting to punish counties like Broward And Olachua for violating the governors ban on such mandates. In hillsborough county, florida, where parents can opt out of the mask requirement, almost 10,000 students are quarantined due to covid cases. One School District outside dallas, texas, getting around the governors Ban On Mask Mandates by making Masks Part of the dress code. President biden directing his Education Secretary to take additional steps to protect children. This includes using all of its oversight authorities and legal action, if appropriate, against governors who are trying to block and intimidate local School Officials and educators. Reporter and the debate over masks in schools isnt just continuing. Its heating up in some places. Its not just shouting matches. In austin, texas, one parent reportedly ripped the mask off one teachers face during a meet the Teacher Event Tuesday Night prompting the superintendent to call on everyone to treat each other respectfully. Wolf . Athena, thank you. Lets get more on the breaking Pandemic News. Joining us, chief medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay gupta and cnn medical analyst dr. Leana wen, the author of a very important new book entitled life lines. There you see it. Sanjay, does this plan, were talking about boosters for all americans, 18 and over, 18 and over, eight months after they had received their second Shot Discipline it make sense when you look at the data presented today on waning Vaccine Efficacy . Let me put it this way. I think it makes the most sense for people who are high risk and vulnerable. People who are high risk from continued exposures, Frontline Workers, Health Care workers and people who are living in longterm care facilities, who are vulnerable because of advanced age, things like that. Let me show you the data theyre talking about. This is some new data. Up until today it was data they were looking at from other countries. What they were showing is the group of people who were Health Care workers, Frontline Workers and predelta in the yellow versus what things look like with delta in terms of Vaccine Effectiveness against infection. It dropped a fair amount with nursing home, longterm care facilities. Started off lower and dropped lower as well. So i think those two populations, you know, are probably the most at risk and most likely to benefit from this. One thing i want to point out, two messages here, wolf. The vaccines, as they are right now, work really well at preventing hospitalization and death. The things weve been talking about since the beginning. There does seem to be some decreased effectiveness against milder and moderate illness. And what they are saying today is were worried because we see some waning and mild to moderate ill and we may see decreased effectiveness on serious illness. Lets get ahead of the ball is what theyre saying and thats whats driving theses so, so sma announcement today, and how effectively health officials are communicating on this booster plan. I actually think that the administration got things exactly right today. Because they are being responsible. It would be irresponsible for them to hold back these data that sanjay is showing. It would be irresponsible to wait until we now are having vaccinated people dying when they could have been protected. Thats obviously not whats happening but i think were seeing this Safety Signal right now. There is a warning sign. And the administration is saying we acknowledge this warning. We are letting the american people know that boosters are coming. Were not saying everybody needs to go to pharmacies and get boosters now but were going to have a plan to get boosters in place. I think a lot of us in Public Health have been wondering why is the u. S. So far behind other countries . Israel, the uk, germany. Theyve already started doing Booster Shots. Why is the u. S. So far behind . Now we see our own data, and i applaud the biden administration for their work. I understand that it may feel like whiplash because only last week we were talking about immunocompromised people having access to a third dose. But i think the data are coming out now for everybody else, and i think we should be ready to get that additional booster when we are eight months past our initial vaccinations. When eight months and some of those other countries, whether israel, uk, germany, you have to wait maybe five or six months. So why eight months . Well, thats what the data show, but i would also hope that the administration allows for some latitude here. We know over A Million americans have already taken matters into their own hands and have gotten an additional booster dose. I hope that people will discuss with their doctors about their own medical risks and then decide whether a booster right now or waiting until its time is the right option. Sanjay, people with weak immune systems, they already can get their Booster Shots. The third shot. But does the recommendation of the third shot eight months after full vaccination mean the most vulnerable americans will, for all practical purposes, be prioritized . Yeah, yeah, it does because its just the calendar. So September 20th is when this may start. Its still pending fda authorization. They have to look and make sure the safety data and efficacy data is in. Theres a couple of steps still. If it all goes, September 20th. So anyone who was vaccinated January 20th or earlier, basically can go at that time. For the most part, because the prioritization in the early days was of the most vulnerable populations, because of the way the calendar works, it will essentially translate now into eight month ares after for those same people. Just to be precise, only for americans 18 and older, if you are under 18, from the 12 to 18, youre not going to get the Booster Shot, at least not now. Sanjay, thank you. Dr. Leana wen, thanks to you as well. Coming up, more on the Breaking News. President biden now raising the possibility that u. S. Forces will stay in afghanistan past their Withdrawal Deadline at the end of this month. Hands feel dry . 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We get unlimited for just 30 bucks. Sweet, i get that too and mine has 5g included. Thats cool, but ours save us serious clamaroonies. Relax people, my wireless is crushing it. Thats because you all have Xfinity Mobile with your internet. Its wireless so good, it keeps one upping itself. More on the Breaking News this hour. President biden defiant, defensive as the chaotic u. S. Withdrawal from afghanistan leaves thousands and thousands of americans stranded and afghans fearing for their lives. Listen to this. Back in july you said a Taliban Takeover was highly unlikely. Was the Intelligence Wrong or did you downplay it . I think there was no consensus. You go back and look at the intelligence reports. They said that there was more likely to be some time by the end of the year. You didnt put a timeline on when you stead was highly unlikely. You just said it was highly unlikely the taliban would take over. Yeah. Well, the question was whether or not the idea that the taliban would take over was premised on the notion that the somehow the 300,000 troops we had trained and equipped was going to just collapse. They were going to give up. I dont think anybody anticipated that. Weve all seen the pictures. The hundreds of people packed into a c17. Weve seen afghans that was four days ago. Five days ago. What did you think when you first saw those pictures . We have to gain control of this. We have to move this more quickly. We have to move in a way in which we can take control of that airport. And we did. So you dont think this could have been handled better in any way . No mistakes . No. I dont think it could have been handled in a way that were going to go back in Hindsight And Look but the idea that somehow there is a way to have gotten out without chaos ensuing, i dont know how that happens. I dont know how that happened. For you that was always priced into the decision . Yes. All troops are supposed to be out by August 31st. Even if americans and our afghan allies are still trying to get out, theyre going to leave . Were going to do everything in our power to get all americans out and our allies out. Does that mean troops will stay beyond August 31st, if necessary . Depends on where we are and whether we can get ramp these numbers Up To 5,000 to 7,000 a day coming out. If thats the case, theyll all be out. Because weve got like 10,000 to 15,000 americans in the country right now, right . And are you committed to making sure that the troops stay until every american who wants to be out yes. Gets out . Yes. How about afghan allies. We have about 80,000 people. Well, thats is that too high . Thats too high. The estimate is somewhere between 50,000 and 65,000 folks total, counting their families. Does the Commitment Hold for them as well . The Commitment Holds to get everyone out that, in fact, we can get out and everyone that should come out. And thats the objective. Thats what were doing now. Thats the path were on. I think well get there. So americans should understand that troops might have to be there beyond August 31st. No, americans should understand that were going to try to get it done before August 31st. But if we dont, the troops will stay. If we dont, well determine at the time who is left. And . And if theres american citizens left, well stay until we get them all out. All right. Lets dig deeper with chief political Correspondent Dana Bash, cnn political Director David Chalian and chief national Affairs Correspondent Jeff Zeleny. David, lets talk about what we just heard from the president. Whats your reaction when you hear what hes saying now, at one point saying i dont think it was a failure in terms of the withdrawal of u. S. Military forces from afghanistan. Yeah, not a failure. And no mistakes. That chaos ensuing was inevitable. If thats the case, why didnt President Biden prepare americans for that being the scenario for what withdrawal would look like . He didnt really lay any groundwork for that, if, indeed, he believed chaos ensuing was inestitable. I think sort of no contrition whatsoever for the Chaos Weve all seen on our screens and the heartbreaking images that weve seen with defensiveness from the president. I mean, where he remains so committed, wolf and where his confidence remains highest is in this ultimate Policy Decision to ultimately withdraw u. S. Forces. Thats where he wants to keep this conversation. But obviously these last several days have taken it elsewhere and he seems defensive about it. He made the point, david, just a few weeks ago at the Nato Summit and when he went to geneva that america is back in terms of the world. But americas allies are very nervous. Theyre worried right now about the United States, americas adversaries, russia and china, theyre gloating right now. Theyre thrilled how the u. S. Has been embarrassed. Talk a little about that. Remember, one of the Calling Cards for Joe Biden that he presented to the american people is 45 years of experience in washington dealing with Foreign Policy matters that he was going to be a steady hand. And, obviously, what were seeing right now out of afghanistan and this withdrawal is anything but steady. So its not quite the america is back image that i think the president was portraying when he said that on the Campaign Trail and first took office. Dana, how do you see it . Exactly the same. And, you know, i think the important thing to keep in mind is that there are two different questions here. The first question, which as david said is the one the president wants to stay focused on is whether or not the idea of withdrawing from afghanistan was right. And hes standing by that and he has multiple polls show the majority of americans behind him for lots of reasons. Then the second question is, the competence with which america made that policy happen. Pulled the troops out. Pulled america out. And its just not really on brand for Joe Biden, the man who said i can do things and the man who said i am and continues to say im going to tell it straight to you, the american people, to say that that was done well because we see it differently with not well, but that he has no regrets and that it was executed as he thought it would be executed because thats just flies in the face of what were all seeing. And so go ahead. No, finish your point. No, i was just going to say, the question that i think we all have to remember is, as bad as those images were, what is it going to look like August 31st or afterwards . Because ultimately, that is how he is going to be and should be judged. What happens to the americans who are there right now . And whether or not those 60,000 people, according to his number, of afghans and their families who helped america, helped the u. S. Allies and want to get out, whether they will be able to get out. As you know, jeff, this president ran on the record he said 40 years of national security experience, international affairs. He was going to get the job it is no question and this is one of the biggest tests and challenges of the biden presidency. It would likely for any president. This is someone that ran on this. If you look back at the history of Joe Bidens tenure here in washington, hes not always been on the Crorrect Side of these Foreign Policy discussions. He came into office with the promise to end americas longest war in afghanistan. So when i talk to officials here, that was the over riding principle, but questions that will be asked and, you know, they will be beginning next week on Capitol Hill when congressional committees beginning to have all these officials under oath asking questions were enough hard questions asked about how this was going to happen . The exit, yes, was coming but was it too swift . Was it too abrupt . At the end of the day we saw the president defiant and defensive, there are many things unfolding and we dont know how this is going to end from the State Department to the pentagon to the Intelligence Community. Everyone is still not on the same page here. So we did not hear the president , you know, he said that he thought chaos was Indin Inev inevitable. If that were the case, hes surprised the military crumbled so quickly, if that were the case, why was that the case . Why was this such a surprise . Many longtime observers predicted just that. So did the president , was he so forceful on ending the war, were there other conversations around his national security fully bri. One said were lucky democrats control the House And Senate otherwise there could be benghazilike committees. Many democratic officials are very concerned, worried about this and many veterans of the afghanistan and iraq war serving in congress. Weve seen them on air and they want to get to the bottom of this. These hearings that begin next week will indeed be uncomfortable for this administration. This is very much in the moment still unfolding here but that August 31st date of course, is that something were keeping an eye on. Will that be extended . The president does not want that because he does want to end this war, wolf . Jeff seouzeleny, thank you. Meanwhile, russia and china, they are seizing on the biden administrations chaotic withdrawal from afghanistan. Were going to take a closer look at the global reaction, the backlash that has followed. 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Cnn senior international correspondent Fred Pleitgen has more from moscow. Tonight as the biden administration faces global criticism for chaotic withdrawal from afghanistan. American scared. Reporter Kremlin Controlled Media isnt even trying to hide its glee with the clear message the u. S. Cant be trusted. Translator now the whole world Saw American Disgrace And Failure and how u. S. Diplomats and staff are rushing around Kabul Airport while all u. S. Allies have pathetic excuses from biden and blinken. Reporter russia is angry at the u. S. Against the Soviet Union in afghanistan in the 1980s. Moscow saying at least the soviet retreat was orderly. Translator apparently, we over estimated the talents of our american colleagues and this army gave up without a fight he says. Reporter The Unraveling In Afghanistan comes only two months after President Biden on his tour of Europe Assured Allies that on his watch, the u. S. Would once again be a global leader. Were going to make it clear that the United States is back and democracies of the world are standing together to tackle the toughest challenges. Reporter but so far, Biden Hasnt done much to signal coordination with nato or allied countries since the taliban over ran kabul. As Leaders Voice Disappointment in the failed u. S. Led mission. Translator afghanistan are obviously also bitter for germany and other ally nations for the 20 years following the 9 11 terror attacks, fought against terrorism in afghanistan under the leadership of the United States and nato. Reporter meanwhile, russia is not the only adversary looking to capitalize on it. Top chinese officials met senior taliban leaders to extract Security Guarantees and revise china projects in afghanistan. Beijings message, dont count on the u. S. Translator has the United States Foreign Policy failed . Will allies think its untrustworthy . The United States and relevant countries will have their own thoughts and conclusions. Reporter with the u. S. Looking to wrap up evacuation flights from kabul soon and allies in shock, China And Russia seem to be savoring this moment of american failure while repairing to deal with afghanistan under taliban rule. And you know, wolf, while the russians are taking a wait and see approach towards the taliban not recognizing them, the foreign Minister Sergei has come out saying hes getting positive signals from the taliban and russians are saying the ambassador in kabul has spoken to the taliban and they have, as they put it, a positive attitude towards the russians, wolf . Russians and chinese, very, very pleased. The allies, nato allies especially disappointed. Not happy at all. Fred pleitgen, thank you very, very much. We just received this new photo. Look at this. This is heartbreaking. This young child is sleeping on the floor of a u. S. Military plane draped with a coat of an Air Force member. The child is now a refugee fleeing the Taliban Regime as thousands more desperately right now are trying to get out. For more information on how you can help afghan refugees, go to cnn. Com impact and impact your world. So, so heartbreaking whats going on. To our viewers, thanks very much for watching. Im Wolf Blitzer the situation room. Erin Burnett Outfront starts right now. Outfront next, President Biden and defensive saying it was not a failure and insisting there was no way to leave the country without chaos ensuing. Why didnt he tell that to the american people before kabul fell . Plus, we have more Breaking News, the president saying u. S. Troops could stay in afghanistan past the August 31st deadline and the biden administration announcing plans to start rolling out covid Booster Shots next month. Dr. Row shell walensky, the Cdc Director is