Washington, D.C. is miserable this time of year. Soul-crushing heat and so much humidity it feels as if you’re trying to breathe underwater.
Former Senate Majority Howard Baker once claimed the downfall of Congress came when air-conditioning was installed in the Capitol in the 1950s. Prior to that, it was too miserable to conduct any business in Washington and the government basically shut down for 2 months.
Would that it were so today.
So you can hardly blame Joe Biden for wanting to go on vacation during these dog days of summer. After all, Biden is getting on in years and he needs to rest more than someone younger.
But Biden might have chosen a more opportune time to relax. This weekend, the Taliban has chosen to play out their endgame in Afghanistan as the national army melts away and the political leadership heads for the hills. It’s a grand game of musical chairs with deadly consequences for those who fail to find a seat when the music stops.
But the demands of the office appear to be too much for the 78-year-old president. Vacation time would seem to be what’s called for. But there’s a problem; by the time the president is rested and refreshed, the world will have been turned upside down.
And it’s not just Afghanistan that’s going down the toilet.
Washington Times:
Mr. Biden has made no remarks on the rapidly deteriorating situation in Afghanistan since Tuesday. He has no public events on his schedule this weekend.
Meanwhile, nearly 140,000 new COVID-19 cases were reported in the U.S. on Thursday, up from the 35,000 new cases on the same date last month.
Gasoline prices reached their highest level in years, but the pump isn’t the only place where consumers are feeling squeezed. Prices for goods and services are climbing higher in a wave of runaway inflation.
Mr. Biden is engaging in the time-honored practice of not opening your mouth to make a crisis worse. Anything he says will be used by his enemies to trash him so why talk at all?
Maybe Joe could talk about the crisis at the border.
And Mr. Biden’s Homeland Security Secretary acknowledged this week the administration is facing a “serious challenge” at the southern border. In July, U.S. Customs and Border Protection apprehended 212,672 people, the highest total in two decades.
A president has access to secure communications and other trappings of Oval Office power whether at the White House, Camp David, aboard Air Force One, or relaxing at a civilian residence. Nevertheless, the timing of Mr. Biden’s vacation provoked criticism.
Rep. Andy Biggs, Arizona Republican, branded Mr. Biden the “commander-in-absentia.”
Virginia Rep. Rob Wittman accused the president of going into hiding. “In less than a year, President Biden has created multiple crises which continue to rage on without any discernible plan. Now, it appears his plan is to hide away in Delaware as the American People suffer under his ineptitude,” said Wittman.
That may be a bit unfair to the president. Biden’s “plan” is simple: “Let it burn.”
Indeed, there’s not much he can do about Afghanistan except to get Americans out of the way so the Taliban doesn’t start a beheading party with Americans as honored guests.
Source: PJ Media
