Author: Nomaan Merchant
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Biden blames Trump for deadly, chaotic Afghan withdrawal
WASHINGTON • President Joe Biden’s administration on Thursday laid the blame on his predecessor, President Donald Trump, for the deadly and chaotic 2021 withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan that brought about some of the darkest moments of Biden’s presidency. The White House publicly released a 12-page summary of the results of the “hotwash” of…
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Top lawmakers briefed on Trump, Biden, Pence documents
WASHINGTON • Top lawmakers in Congress were briefed Tuesday on the investigations into classified documents found in the private possession of President Joe Biden, former President Donald Trump and former Vice President Mike Pence. U.S. Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines was among the officials who met privately with congressional leaders for roughly an hour.…
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Top lawmakers briefed on Trump, Biden, Pence documents
WASHINGTON • Top lawmakers in Congress were briefed Tuesday on the investigations into classified documents found in the private possession of President Joe Biden, former President Donald Trump and former Vice President Mike Pence. U.S. Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines was among the officials who met privately with congressional leaders for roughly an hour.…
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U.S. intel questioned for misjudging Afghanistan, Ukraine
WASHINGTON • Top U.S. intelligence officials were questioned Tuesday about why they misjudged the durability of governments in Afghanistan and Ukraine, and whether they need to reform how intelligence agencies assess a foreign military’s will to fight. U.S. intelligence believed the U.S.-backed Kabul government would hold out for months against the Taliban and thought Russian…
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Pressure on U.S. to give Ukraine more intelligence on Russia
WASHINGTON • President Joe Biden has called Russia’s war on Ukraine a genocide and accused Vladimir Putin of committing war crimes. But his administration has struggled with how much intelligence it is willing to give the Ukrainian forces that are trying to stop the Russian leader. Since the war began in late February, the Biden…
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White House: Intel shows Putin misled by advisers on Ukraine
WASHINGTON • U.S. intelligence officials have determined that Russian President Vladimir Putin is being misinformed by advisers about his military’s poor performance in Ukraine, according to the White House. The advisers are scared to tell him the truth, the intel says. The findings, recently declassified, indicate that Putin is aware of the situation on information…
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Appeals court weighs Trump arguments to withhold records
WASHINGTON • A panel of judges on Tuesday questioned whether they had the authority to grant former President Donald Trump’s demands and stop the White House from allowing the release of documents related to the Jan. 6 insurrection led by Trump’s supporters. But the judges also noted that there might be times when a former…
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Taliban: After Aug. 31 deadline, ‘we won’t let Afghans be taken out’
The Taliban warned Tuesday that the U.S. airlift from Afghanistan must end Aug. 31, ramping up pressure on an already chaotic evacuation as new reports of rights abuses fueled concern about the fate of thousands of people still trying to flee the country. A senior U.S. official said President Joe Biden is also committed to…
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U.S. report: Taliban will likely curtail Afghan women’s rights
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. intelligence agencies are warning that any gains in women’s rights in Afghanistan made in the last two decades will be at risk after U.S. troops withdraw later this year. An unclassified report released Tuesday by the Director of National Intelligence says the Taliban remain “broadly consistent in its restrictive approach to…
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Man rams car into 2 Capitol police; 1 officer, driver killed
WASHINGTON — A Capitol Police officer was killed Friday after a man rammed a car into two officers at a barricade outside the U.S. Capitol and then emerged wielding a knife. It was the second line-of-duty death this year for a department still struggling to heal from the Jan. 6 insurrection. Video shows the driver…