company of american heroes. to those who carried out this attack, as well as anyone who wishes america harm no this. we will not forgive. we will not forget. we will hunt you down to make you pay our defend our interest in our people with every measure at my command over the past few weeks. know your many of you probably tired to hear me say we've been made aware by our intelligence community that the isis k. an arch enemy, the tale bombs, people who are friedman, both those prisons are open, has been planning a complex set of attacks in the united states personnel and others. this is why

from the outset, i repeatedly said this mission was extraordinarily dangerous. and why i've been so determined to limit the duration of this mission general mackenzie said, this is why our mission was designed this way is designed to operate, operate under severe stress and attack. we've known that from the beginning. as i've been in constant contact of our senior military leaders and i mean constant round the clock and our commanders on the ground throughout the day. they made it clear that we can, we must complete this mission and we will can. that's what i've ordered them to do . we will not be deterred by terrorist will not let them stop our mission, we will continue to evacuation. i've also ordered my commander,

develop operational plans for strike cases, k assets, leadership in facilities. we will respond with force of precision at our time, at the place we choose in a moment of our choosing. here's what you need to know. these isis tears will not when we will rescue the americans. we will get our afghan allies and our mission will go on. marika will not be intimidated. and i have the utmost confidence in our brave service. members are continually execute this mission with courage and honor to save lives and get americans. our partners are afghan allies, out of afghanistan. every day, when i talk to our commanders, i ask them what they need. what more do they need to get the job done? they will tell you, i granted ever request. i re reiterated them today on 3 occasions.

that they should take the maximum steps necessary to protect our forces on the ground and campbell. and i also want to thank the sector defense, the military leadership of the pentagon, and all the commanders in the field for has been complete unanimity from every commander on the objectives of this mission. and the best way to achieve those objectives. those of serve through the ages have drawn inspiration from the book of isaiah. when the lord says, whom shall i send? who shall go for us? reckon military ben answered for a long time. here i am, lord, send me. here i am, send me each one of these women and men of our armed forces are the heirs of that tradition of sacrifice and voluntary and going arms way to risk everything. not for glory, not for profit, but to fed what we love and the people we love. and i ask that you join me now

in a moment of silence, for all those in uniform. now beautiful military and civilian, given the last full measure of devotion. thank you. god bless you all, my god, protect his troops. and although stand you watch for america, we are so much to do within our capacity to do it, we just have to remain steadfast,

steadfast. we will complete our mission to continue after were troops of withdrawn to find means by which we defined any american wishes to get out of afghanistan. we will find them, we will get them out. flayson gentleman gave me a list here. the 1st person i was expecting a call, i was keller donovan besiege you have heard leaving afghanistan is in the national interest of the united states. after today's attack . do you believe you will authorize additional forces to respond to that attack inside afghanistan? and are you prepared to add additional forces to protect those americans who remain on the ground carrying out the evacuation operation? i've instructed the military, whatever they need,

if they need additional force. i will grant it. but the military from the chairman, joint chiefs joined chief commanders in the fields of all contact me one way or another, usually by letter saying they subscribe to the mission is designed to get as many people out as we can within the timeframe that is a lot it that is the best way they believe to get as many americans out as possible and others. and with regard to finding, tracking down the isis leaders who ordered this we have some reason to believe we know they are not certain. and we will find ways for choosy without large military operations to get them

wherever they are. trevor writers. thank you mister president. there's been some criticism, even from people in your party about the dependence on the taliban to secure the perimeter of the airport d. do you feel like there was a mistake made in that regard? no, i don't look. i think 10 mackenzie handle this question very well. the fact is that where the situation where inherited situation, particularly since, as we all know, that the african military collapse 11 days before 11 days that it is in the interest of,

as mackenzie said in the interest of the tale mon, that in fact isis k is not attached to size beyond what it is. number one. and number 2, it's an interest that we are able to leave on time on targets. as a consequence of that, the major things we've asked them moving back the perimeter. gimme more space between the wall. stopping vehicles from coming through and cetera. searching people coming through it is now a good call. a tightly commanded regimented operation like the u. s's military's but they're acting in their interest,

their interest. and so by and large and i've asked the center, same question to military on the ground. whether or not it's useful exercise, no one trust them. we're just counting on their self interest to continue to generate directives. as in their self interest that we leave when we said and that we get as many people out as we can. like i said, even in the midst of everything happen today over 7000 people, we've got now 5000 americans. so it's not a matter trust, it's a matter of mutual self interest and but there is no evidence thus far than i have been given as

a consequence by any of our commanders of the field that there has been collusion between the taliban and isis in carrying out what happened today, both a pro tell and what is expected to continue for the on today. the mere so shaded press. thank you mister president. you have spoken again, powerfully about your own son and the weight of these decisions with that in mind. and also what you've said that the longer we stay, the more likelihood that there would be a major attack. how do you weigh staying even one more day, considering what's happened? because i think what america says matters. what we say we're going to do in the

context in which we say we're going to do it that we do it. unless something exceptional changes. there are additional merican citizens or additional green cardholders for additional personnel of our allies. there are additional s i v card holders or additional atkinson helped us. and there are additional groups of individuals that will be contacted us from women's groups to en jose and others who have expressly indicated they want to get out and have gathered in certain circumstances in groups and buses. and other means that still

presents the opportunity for the next several days between now and the 31st to be able to get them out and our military. and i believe, to the extent that we can do that, knowing the threat, knowing that we may very well have another attack, the military is concluded, that's what we should do. i think they're right. think they're correct. and after that, we're going to be in a circumstance where there are, will be, i believe, numerous opportunities to continue to provide access for additional persons to get out of afghanistan. either

through means that we provide and or, or provide it through and cooperation with the tale. but they're not good guy's telling me, i'm not suggesting that at all, but they have keen interest. as many of you been reporting a very much like to figure out how to keep the airport open and have the capacity to do it, they very much you're trying to figure out whether or not they can now maintain. what is the portion of an economy that has become not robust, but fundamentally different than it had? and so there's a lot of reasons why they have reached out to us, but others as to why it would be continued in their interest to get more of the personnel. we want to get out,

we can locate them. now there's not many left that we can assess that or want to come out there. some americans, we've been den affine and contacted the vast majority of them. not all of them who don't want to leave his ab signal, their dual nationals, and extended families and cetera. and there's others who are looking for the time. so that's why we continue to take a few more questions and, but i wanted to ask you, you say that what america says matters? what do you say to the afghans who helped troops who may not be able to get out by august 31st. when they were you said to you to try to get you out. it matters. look . i know of no conflict as a student of history. no conflict where when a war was ended,

one side was able to guarantee that everyone they wanted to be extracted from that country would get out and think about it. folks make it's important. i know the american people get this in their gut. there are i would argue, millions of afghani citizens who are natalie mon, who did not actively cooperate with us as s i. d. 's who have given a chance may be on board a plane tomorrow. it sounds ridiculous, but the vast majority of people and communities like that want to come to america, given a choice. so getting every single person out is

can't be guaranteed anybody because there's a termination or who wants to get out as well. anyway, it's a process. i was really pointing to you, but he said, mister president, there are reports that us officials provide the taliban with names of americans in afghan official to evacuate. were you aware of that? did that happen? and then, sir, did you personally reject a recommendation to hold or to recapture background air force base? here's what i've done this and for the last question 1st. the tactical question is how to conduct an evacuation or war. i gather up all the major military personnel that are in afghanistan, commanders, as well as the pentagon. i asked for their best military judgment. what would be the most efficient way to accomplish the mission?

they concluded the military. the bar room was not much value added and it was much wiser to focus on campbell. and so i followed that recommendation with regard to there are certain circumstances where we've gotten information and quite frankly, sometimes some, some of you saying, you know, of such and such a group of people are trying to get out there on a bus or moving from other people and this is their location. and there have been occasions when our military has contracted their military counterparts in a taller bond and said this, for example, this bus is coming through with x number of people on it made up of the following

group of people. we want you to let that bus or that group through. so yes, there have been occasions like that in the best of my knowledge. in those cases, the bulk of that has occurred, they been led through. but i can't tell you with any certitude that there's actually been a list of names. i know there may have been, but i know of no circumstance that means not didn't exist. that here's the names of 12 people there come and let them through. it could very well have happen. i'll take one more question, way, let me take the one question from the most interesting guy that i know in the press that you was surprised that there had not been a u. s. service member killed in combat in afghanistan. since february of 2020, you said a deadline, you pulled troops out. you sent troops back in and out. 12 marines are dead. you

said the buck stops with you. do you bear any responsibility for the way the things have unfolded and the last 2 weeks, i bare responsibility for fundamentally, all this happened of late. but here's the deal. you know, i wish you one day say these things, you know, as well as i do, that the former president made a deal with italy boss. and he, we get all american forces out of afghanistan by may 1 in return the commitment was made. that was a year before he returned, he was given a commitment. it's a tale bonn would continue to attack others, but would not attack any american forces. remember that i'm being serious. now. damn asking you a question, be because before? no, no, no, wait a minute. i'm asking you a question. i said is that accurate diversity or not

the way i think they have an issue that people are like to get hurt some as we've seen, gotten killed and that it is messy. the reason why whether my friend will acknowledge it. so he's reported it the reason why there were no attacks and americans, as you said, from the date until i came in office, was because the committee was made by president trump. i will be out by may 1st. in the meantime, you agree not to attack any american that was the deal. that's why no american was attacked. they rarely pull out. yes,

i do because look at it this way and i'm going to, i have another meeting for real. but imagine where we'd be if i had indicated on may the 1st i was not going to renegotiate a vacuum ition day. we were going to stay there. i'm only one alternative, poor thousands more troops back into afghanistan to fight a war that we had already won relative to why the reason we went in the 1st place. i have never been of the view that we should be sacrificing american lives to try to establish a democratic government in afghanistan and a country that has never once in its entire history,

many united country and is made up. i don't mean this is a derogatory, made up of different tribes who have never, ever, ever gotten along with one. and so, as i said before, this last comment, i'll make one more chance to talk about this. unfortunately beyond because we're not how yet if oh sama been latin as well as al qaeda had chosen to launch an attack when they left saudi arabia out of yemen. would we have ever gone to afghanistan, even though the tale bond, completely control canister, and it's a time would we have ever gone? i know it's not fair to ask you questions. it's rhetorical, but raise your hand if you think we should have gone. and given up thousands of

lives and tens of thousands of owned our interest in going was to prevent al qaeda from reemerging 1st to get in line. why bad are kind enough to understand prevent that from happening? so i've said a 100 times terrorism is metastasized around the world. we have greater threats coming out of other countries. heck of a lot, closer to the united states. we don't have military encampments there, we don't keep people there. we have over them rise and capability to keep them from going. ladies and gentlemen, it was time to end a 20 year war. thank you so much. the right. we've been listening to you as president joe biden, speaking about the explosions that happened in the afghan capital campbell,

this in his 1st reaction to those deadly attacks in which 12 us service members were killed. another 15 injured, of course reports indicating that 60 afghans were also killed in those attacks by and said that today's attack and demonstrated precisely why he wanted to accept the country and to limit the duration of the us presence in afghanistan. the president then held a moment of silence for those who died in the attack, or joining me now is retired admiral william fall and he joins us on the phone from big sky montana. he's a former head of the us central command, who directed all u. s. military operations in the middle east, central asia, and the horn of africa, focusing on combat efforts in iraq and afghanistan. what are your initial thoughts on the president's comments just that particularly the suggestion at the end of his statement, when he was taking questions, it was an inevitable lity to today's attacks because of the inherent instability and in afghanistan. my reaction is, 1st of all,

one of the complete disgust at the decision to go out in the manner in which it was done a going back to the crazy agreement that was signed or agreed to by the former president, trump and then president for whatever reason believing that he needed to follow through on that i think that it's a huge mistake because of effectively the combat was over the major combat. it's been over for quite some time and afghan, a stand. we had a residual couple of 1000 troops there, which in my opinion should have stayed or some equivalent number of those to do the tasks that remain. and i would point out the incredible parallel with this decision to pull troops out entirely. and the decision made several years earlier

by another president in iraq, in which we completely abandoned the place. and then we saw the emergence of the groups and had to go back in again and, and this is exactly what we're seeing today. so i don't, i think the inevitability is only in the, regarding the business of if you don't keep good eye and ear on what's going on and have some ability in hand to disrupt it. ready we will see you continuation of these terrorist attacks, so they're not going to go away entirely. there's no practical way to make that happen. and the best way in my experience that we found to deal with this is the key, a small residual presence in the country of interest. and to know what's going on to try to work with the whole country. to have as much situational awareness as

possible. and when required to reach out and, and smack these people to keep them on balance. and that's, that's the tragedy of it. i think that's the inevitable. the other that these groups we went into afghanistan in 1st place to get rid of al qaeda and osama bin lot. and then to try to prevent from day one returns of that kind of shelter that was provided by the top line for these kind of groups. and here we are, that seemingly it's square one. after 20 years it's, it's very discouraging, very saddening to to hear about the carnage and in the capital in cobble can i know that there are many, and i can i then asked you what is your view on us corporation with the taliban that of the years of fighting the taliban insurgency, washington is now relying on the group to protect american lives. well,

i would refer to what i think i heard a few minutes ago from the president's mouth, but you can't trust these guys. that's the case then for high did we make a deal in which we allegedly trusted them. and so i would back out the bigger picture here in my opinion. sooner or later, you have to negotiate an end to these conflicts one way or another. but the way to do it, it seems to me is to make sure that you retain enough leverage to give you some counter to the lack of trust or mr. ross that you have any other side that that's not surprising, it seems to me. and that's obviously what we fail to do. we basically gave them all the cards. and now we're setting try to figure out what to do. so that's, that's really pretty sad. what did you make of the president's assertion? that he granted every request of the generals and that he told them to do what was

necessary to protect american lives if that were the case, how could this have happened? was it the general's not providing the correct advice or was it the president not taking advice from his generals? well, i have no idea what discussions ensued between the present military folks. but i would point out that it's all kind of mood, a given the box that the people were given, namely, leave and, and the door edge and the backside and do it again. but there was no, no ability, no flexibility, it seems to me. and so we're just dealing with counting on the good faith of those bad actors that have been attacking us for many years. not just enough ganesh dam around the world. so it's i find it pretty incredulous,

just listening to the word. well admiral, i appreciate your time. thank you very much for sharing your thoughts of those retired admiral william fallon, joining us on the phone that from big sky montana. when i was close, when it can be i'll get joins is live now. and kimberly were just hearing that from the former head of us central command saying that he is disgusted with the way in which this withdrawal has taken place. we obviously sort of as a be shaken president when he was delivering his statement that bought, he essentially defended his policy. what is the reaction likely to be very washington? well, the reaction in washington is divided as one could expect. there are those that are calling for joe biden's resignation, mostly his republican critics, to have been arguing that this has been.