The Biden administration recently initiated discussions on how to handle the anniversary of the much-criticized controversial withdrawal, including ways to avoid missteps that could further hurt President Joe Biden in the polls, the report said, citing six administration officials.
The discussions, led by National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby, focused on how exactly officials should discuss the withdrawal. Officials from the departments of State, Defense and Homeland Security participated in the discussion, the report said.
Topics of discussion included coordinating efforts to mark the withdrawal anniversary and ways to ensure the administration conveys a common message and tone, the report said.
Administration officials have expressed concern that an official could make a statement viewed as insensitive to the families of the 13 soldiers killed at Kabul airport in the final stage of the US withdrawal. The National Security Council’s goal broadly is to make sure no one says anything “stupid,” the report cited two of the six officials as saying.
The National Security Council has also been contacting officials at the departments of State and Defense to verify the status of their reviews of the US withdrawal, which was announced by the White House almost a year ago and is yet to be completed, the report noted.
The reviews are ongoing, while the intelligence community’s review is close to being complete, although it is expected to be mostly classified. The White House has not yet decided what parts of the reviews will be made public or given to Congress, the report said.
The coordinated messaging about what many perceived to be a disastrous US withdrawal from Afghanistan comes amid concerns that Biden’s approval rating among voters has hit an all-time low.
*The Taliban is under UN sanctions for terrorist activities.