Retired military leaders defend Harris while placing blame on Trump for Afghanistan withdrawal in letter

Several retired military officials issued a letter in support of Vice President Kamala Harris as Republicans attempt to tie her to the chaotic 2021 US withdrawal from Afghanistan.

“Vice President Kamala Harris is the best – and only – presidential candidate in this race who is fit to serve as our commander-in-chief. She has demonstrated her ability to take on the most difficult national security challenges in the Situation Room and on the international stage,” the group wrote in a National Security Leaders for America letter.

The letter cited Harris “rallying our allies against Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine to standing shoulder to shoulder with our allies in the Indo-Pacific against China’s provocative actions, to advancing U.S. leadership on space and artificial intelligence.”

The letter comes after House Republicans and Democrats issued dueling documents casting blame for mistakes made in the US exit from Afghanistan. The Republican report cites Harris as having worked “in lockstep with President Biden behind the scenes to withdraw all US troops.” It also aims to implicate Harris in its accusations by referring to the current government as “the Biden-Harris administration.”

The group of retired generals placed blame on former President Donald Trump for “putting service members in harm’s way” while he was in office, and argued he didn’t leave the Biden administration in a position to execute a withdrawal efficiently.

“Without involving the Afghan government, he and his Administration negotiated a deal with the Taliban that freed 5,000 Taliban fighters and allowed them to return to the battlefield,” the letter claimed.

“Then, he left President Biden and Vice President Harris with no plans to execute a withdrawal, and with little time to do so. This chaotic approach severely hindered the Biden-Harris Administration’s ability to execute the most orderly withdrawal possible and put our service members and our allies at risk.”

This is a developing story and will be updated.