Politics A.M.: Defiant and defensive, a president known for empathy takes a cold-eyed approach to Afghanistan debacle

Afghan government collapses as Taliban sweeps in, U.S. sends... | Presented by Accenture ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

Introductory offer: Get one year of digital access for just $40.  Sign up for this newsletter Read online The most important politics stories today. Presented by Accenture     (Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post) Defiant and defensive, a president known for empathy takes a cold-eyed approach to Afghanistan debacle Biden issues a harsh and bracing assessment on the casualties from America's longest war, including the Afghans themselves, as the Taliban takes control. By Anne Gearan and Cleve Wootson ●  Read more »   Afghan government collapses as Taliban sweeps in, U.S. sends more troops to aid chaotic withdrawal Afghan President Ashraf Ghani fled the country. The American flag was lowered at the U.S. embassy as diplomats sought a flight out. By Susannah George, Claire Parker, John Hudson, Karen DeYoung, Dan Lamothe and Bryan Pietsch ●  Read more »   From Saigon to Kabul: Biden's response to Vietnam echoes in his views of Afghanistan withdrawal "I am convinced there is absolutely no chance," the young senator told reporters in 1975, referring to the odds of turning things around in Vietnam. By Annie Linskey ●  Read more »   ADVERTISEMENT Content from Accenture Make the Leap, Take the Lead During the pandemic, the rate of tech adoption has accelerated, but not equally. Our research shows that leaders have compressed digital transformation and moved even further ahead of the pack in innovation and growth.   The missing context in Biden's prescription drug speech The president pitched his plan for reining in the cost of prescription drugs, but some of his facts lacked context or had a one-side presentation of the issue. Analysis ●  By Glenn Kessler ●  Read more »   New York Assembly will suspend impeachment probe upon Cuomo's resignation, speaker says Cuomo has announced that he will resign later this month following a report that found he sexually harassed 11 women and oversaw an unlawful attempt to exact retribution against one of his accusers. By Felicia Sonmez and Michael Scherer ●  Read more »   ADVERTISEMENT   'Outsider' Buttigieg plays a skillful inside game, positioning himself for the future Biking with Republicans. Tacos with AOC. Buttigieg is deftly using the infrastructure talks to quietly build a network, potentially laying the groundwork for his political future. By Sean Sullivan, Tyler Pager and Seung Min Kim ●  Read more »   Embattled California Gov. Newsom, facing recall election, says it's time for Democrats to wake up With Republicans motivated, Newsom says the threat of the recall is real unless Democrats start to take the election seriously. Analysis ●  By Dan Balz ●  Read more »   Biden has wanted the U.S. to pull the plug on Afghanistan for years. Doing it has consequences. The president relied on instinct and experience in ordering U.S. troops out of Afghanistan. But the Taliban's rapid onslaught could sour Americans' views of the pullout. By Anne Gearan and Karen DeYoung ●  Read more »   DeSantis, faced with covid surge, urges Floridians to use Regeneron antibody treatment given to Trump The Florida governor has opposed implementing pandemic restrictions during the fourth wave of the pandemic. By Timothy Bella ●  Read more »   Family of D.C. officer who died by suicide after Capitol riot files lawsuit against alleged attackers Officer Jeffrey Smith killed himself nine days after the Jan. 6 insurrection. By Peter Hermann and Rachel Weiner ●  Read more »   ADVERTISEMENT   James C. Hormel, first openly gay U.S. ambassador, dies at 88 He received a recess appointment from President Bill Clinton after his nomination as envoy to Luxembourg was blocked by GOP senators. By Matt Schudel ●  Read more »     We think you'll like this newsletter Check out Coronavirus Updates for news to help you stay safe and informed during the pandemic. Access to all stories in the newsletter is free. Sign up »

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