The right thing to say. So i might get with my Needle And Thread posse and make a pillow out of its. Thats the one. America should hear this again. Elections have consequences, even if impeachments dont. [laughs] coming soon to a tshirt near you. [laughs] thank you rachel. Thank you lawrence. President biden left a marker for history today, he delivered the most accurate and most honest speech by an american president About Afghanistan. The bar could not be lower for honest and accurate president ial speeches on afghanistan, especially considering the woefully inarticulate president ial speech that started the war in afghanistan, with george w. Bush making promises that were filled with absurdity by the time his presidency came to an end. In fact, by the time his first term ended. Promises such as, we will win this conflict by the Patient Accumulation of successes, we will not fail. Peace and freedom will prevail. To deliver the best president ial speech in history About Afghanistan, a
Military and our diplomats and intelligence professionals. That was the choice, the real choice, between leaving or escalating. I was not going to extend this forever war. And i was not extending a forever exit. To those asking for a third decade of war in afghanistan, i ask, what is the vital national interest . It was time to end this war. We will maintain the fight against terrorism. We just dont need to fight a Ground War to do it. And to isisk, we are not done with you yet. The speech gets the broader outlines of his Foreign Policy, saying that the era of Nation Building is over. The president also noted that the u. S. Would help evacuate the estimated 1 to 200 americans still in afghanistan, if they want to leave. The State Department also think kabul embassy staff, posting this photo taken just before the departure. There is no longer an embassy in afghanistan. Those diplomats will now be based in qatar. Meanwhile Nbc News has learned more about just how closely the taliban work
We never have and we never will know how to do that. that is tonight s last word, the 11th hour with brian williams starts now. good evening once again, i m chris qian sitting in for brian williams. day 220 for the biden administration, which is now trying to turn the page on the exit from afghanistan and the chaotic evacuation. this afternoon about 24 hours after the last 17 cargo plane took off from kabul, president biden stepped to the white house dining room to offer a defense of his decision to end america s longest war. no nation, no nation has anything ever done like this. the success of this mission was due to the incredible skill and bravery of the united states
Not get too close to cause contamination with the coronavirus. it s a very tough situation. because the solution chris, is that you need twice as many shelters. because we have to keep people separated. and we don t really have that in very many places. now before i let you go i have to ask you about this new research from south africa, that flag then you see one to variant for the world to monitor. what do we know about. it should we be worried? i m not worried. most people are not worried about. it we ve noted sit, it s not even a variant of interest. no less a variant of concern. which are the words that we start to pay attention. right now it s just a newly identified very, and we will have to see how that unfolds. hopefully it will not be a cause for too much concern or trouble. but we will have to watch. it s a reminder that variants are constantly developing. constant mutations. and we have to track in surveil those, as carefully and as effectively as we possibly can.
Afghanistan is not just about afghanistan. it is about ending an era of major military operations to remake other countries. yeah, i think, chris, the bet that joe biden is making, is that this is about bringing an into the post 9/11 period. that these missions that set an achievable objectives and have cost rulings of dollars and are unsustainable and what he is saying is that i am not going to continue those policies that have demonstrably not succeeded at huge cost. and also, importantly, he is saying, look, part of the reason we need to end these wars, is that we need to focus on a new set of challenges. we need to focus on the challenge from china and the threat to democracy from russia. we have to focus on climate change. we have to do work on our democracy at home. and i think the biden presidency, as it interacts with foreign policy, is saying,