A Newsmax host recently lost his cool on live TV after an American veteran stated that both the Trump and Biden administrations were to blame for the chaotic withdrawal and ensuing crisis that consumed Afghanistan.
Video of the eyebrow-raising confrontation shows Newsmax host Grant Stinchfield initially discussing the US withdrawal before abruptly raising his voice and yelling at producers to "cut" guest Joe Saboe from the program. Saboe is an Iraq War veteran who founded the Team America organization to help Americans and allies.
Stinchfield claimed that US President Donald Trump wanted to get out of Afghanistan "real bad," but that he ultimately held off on removing troops because "he knew" that chaos would unfold if he did so.
"I've got Americans there that are stuck. To me, that's a hostage situation," Stinchfield commented. But then came Saboe's unwelcomed response that Trump's handling of the situation was "fairly weak," which immediately sent the Newsmax host off the rails.
"Joe I'm gonna cut you, I'm already weak, I'm already low on time, Joe. Cut him off, please. Cut him off now!" he yells out to his producers, with Saboe being pulled from the screen. "You're not gonna blame this on President Trump on my show. That's not happening!"
"Don't come on this program and take the talking points of the left and blame President Trump -that's not helping anybody. The Biden administration screwed this up from the very start. You know it, I know it, the country knows it," Stinchfield yelled out to his viewers.
Regaining his composure, Stinchfield later ended the segment by stating that he would be bringing "a real hero" to the show before quickly acknowledging that Saboe was a hero as well since he served in the US military.
In a Thursday statement to The Hill, a spokesperson for Newsmax stated that Stinchfield fully "respects all our veterans" but that he "doesn't believe the media and others should be pointing fingers at Pres. Trump for a problem Pres. Biden created by his chaotic withdrawal."
It seems worth noting that it was under Trump that the latest withdrawal procedures were initiated after the former president brought Taliban* officials to the negotiating table for a peace deal. While the agreement initially laid out a May 1 deadline, Biden later extended the timeline to ensure that adequate time would be given to withdraw.
While Biden moved to simply deliver on the arrangement mapped out under the Trump White House, the pullout was admittedly far from ideal, and has only served as fuel for criticism of Biden's efforts. Many have blasted the administration, including some family members of 9/11 victims who viewed the withdrawal as a disgrace to their loved ones' memory.
Biden has repeatedly indicated that his decision to continue with the withdrawal agreement was rooted in a desire to not send another generation of Americans into the war-torn country, especially as not even Afghan security forces moved to resist Taliban forces before they claimed the Afghan capital of Kabul.
*The Taliban is a terrorist organization banned in Russia and many other countries.