Ron DeSantis blames ‘Beltway clique’ for Afghanistan botch
Ron DeSantis. Image via Twitter.

ron desantis
Governor talks foreign policy in Bradenton.

Gov. Ron DeSantis, who was inspired to serve in the military in the wake of 9/11, has not been shy in condemning the haphazard American exit from Afghanistan.

In remarks made Saturday in Lakeland, the Republican Governor expanded on previously established critiques. Specifically, DeSantis castigated the “Beltway clique”: the “in-group” elites who lurched into what became a 20-year American adventure in the land often called the “graveyard of empires.”

DeSantis, speaking at the opening of a monoclonal antibody site, said the policy failures ran deep in D.C.

“After 20 years, there’s been a lot of failures on the political front. And there’s no accountability that I’ve seen. Has a single person tendered their resignation as a result of this? Has anyone been fired? Have we seen anything?”

“It just seems like with our national government, if you’re part of the Beltway clique, you won’t have any consequences. As long as you’re part of the in group, you can fail upwards and keep failing upwards. I think there needs to be some accountability for this,” DeSantis said, describing the departure as “humiliating for our country” and a “gut punch for our veterans.”

DeSantis, who served in Iraq, contrasted the efforts of those who fought the war to those who planned it from afar. He noted that for some families, the sacrifice was generational.

“There are some people who have served, and their kids have served. So there’s been a lot of blood and effort and tears and toil put over there and I understand, you can’t stay there forever, we need to re-deploy. But you have to do that by protecting the Americans that are there first and foremost,” DeSantis said.

Regarding the “thousands and thousands of Americans” trapped behind Taliban lines in hostile Kabul, DeSantis has nothing but apprehension about their fate.

“I fear that the worst is yet to come,” DeSantis said, describing the exit operation as “disgraceful” and inconsistent with the sacrifice of veterans themselves.

Expect DeSantis to continue hammering President Joe Biden over the Afghanistan denouement, as it has been a running theme in comments.

“The President’s not focusing. He’s not focusing on those American lives. And it’s just humiliating as an American to see what’s going on, particularly with all the people who worked and sacrificed over there,” DeSantis said Friday in Fort Walton Beach.

The Biden administration is considering calling on U.S. commercial airlines to provide planes and crews to assist in transporting Afghan refugees once they are evacuated from their country by military aircraft. Under the voluntary Civil Reserve Air Fleet program, civilian airlines add to military aircraft capability during a crisis related to national defense. That program was born in the wake of the Berlin airlift.

The U.S. Transportation Command said Saturday it had issued a warning order to U.S. carriers Friday night on the possible activation of the program. If called upon, commercial airlines would transport evacuees from way stations outside Afghanistan to another country or from Virginia’s Dulles International Airport to U.S. military bases.

The Governor addressed Afghanistan previously this week, charging Biden at another press conference with a “lack of leadership.” The comments to Florida media, predictably, revisited themes rehearsed earlier in the week for a national television audience on Fox News’ Hannity show Wednesday night.

A.G. Gancarski

A.G. Gancarski has been the Northeast Florida correspondent for Florida Politics since 2014. He writes for the New York Post and National Review also, with previous work in the American Conservative and Washington Times and a 15+ year run as a columnist in Folio Weekly. He can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter: @AGGancarski


17 comments

  • Alex

    August 21, 2021 at 1:59 pm

    Freakshow needs to get his shit together and face the fact he’s wrong about masks in schools instead of whining about things above his pay grade.

    Honor your oath to Florida first freakshow.

    • Impeach Biden

      August 21, 2021 at 2:00 pm

      Got it. Wear the face diaper and all will be fine. Are you wearing yours right now?

      • Alex

        August 21, 2021 at 2:15 pm

        Still can’t put together a rational comment.

        Congrats.

    • Tom

      August 21, 2021 at 2:14 pm

      You have no pay or grade you hack.
      See my comments below and my reply on the Twitter Story. You can’t play pal.
      America’s Govs kahones are giant especially compared to you. LMAO you pud!

      • Alex

        August 21, 2021 at 2:17 pm

        I don’t waste time reading your nonsense.

        You’re a 5 time proven liar, so there’s no point.

      • Tom

        August 21, 2021 at 2:39 pm

        You can’t accept anything out of liberal cocoon. Dumb ass. LMAO.

  • Impeach Biden

    August 21, 2021 at 1:59 pm

    Go get em Ronnie. We have no leadership in the United States right now with dementia man and his incompetent sidekick. May we rid ourselves of these two knuckleheads in 2024.

  • Tom

    August 21, 2021 at 2:07 pm

    You go Governor Ron, America’s Governor has the bona fides having volunteered and served his country. He’s absolutely right. Floridians witness his precision snd laser focus like getting seniors inoculated. And we see it again with the monoclonal strike force. Fraud stalker Fried freaked out yesterday. Great effort and example. Keep it up Gov.

  • Amy Briggs

    August 21, 2021 at 3:09 pm

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  • PeterH

    August 21, 2021 at 3:42 pm

    Fun Facts;

    While Incompetent Ron DeSantis complains about national issues instead of Florida’s issues here are some factual statistics.

    In the past twenty years of America’s involvement in Afghanistan:
    2,448 members of the U.S. military and Department of Defense civilians have died in Afghanistan since 2001, according to the DOD website. An additional 20,722 U.S. service personnel and DOD civilians have been wounded in action, according to the website.

    Because of Ron DeSantis’s failed leadership:

    Coronavirus Cases:
    3,039,988

    Recovered:
    2,321,270

    Deaths:
    41,937

    • Impeach Biden

      August 21, 2021 at 3:52 pm

      Don’t stop there. List the casualty report in all 50 States and around the world. I guess we should replace every Governor and world leader.

    • Tom

      August 21, 2021 at 5:30 pm

      “Fun facts” apologize. You r sick.

  • PeterH

    August 21, 2021 at 3:55 pm

    Fun Fact;

    Per capita Florida has more Covid deaths than California.

  • Tom

    August 21, 2021 at 5:28 pm

    “Fun fact” Really ? Deaths?
    You sick Libtard
    Pathetic, you are ill.

  • Frankie M.

    August 21, 2021 at 6:09 pm

    As long as you’re part of the in group, you can fail upwards and keep failing upwards.

    He literally just described his own career path thanks to the way he attaches himself to Trump the way a remora attaches itself to a shark. Does he not see the irony here?

    • Tom

      August 21, 2021 at 6:34 pm

      Shut up moron.

  • father gregory states

    August 21, 2021 at 10:28 pm

    playwrights sanctuary
    sos theater
    emergency theater
    previews
    ‘gates of jalabad & heaven’
    afghanistan fantasia part 2 to ‘utopia rescheduled’

Comments are closed.


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