By Chuck Warren
On the most recent anniversary of the September 11 attacks, President Joe Biden became the first president since the attacks occurred not to participate in any commemorations of the events in Washington or New York City. Almost certainly to find a good excuse, his staff scheduled an overseas trip for him in Vietnam, and he spent 9/11 in Alaska on his way back home. More so, the administration has been so adamant to move on from the memories of 9/11 and normalize the worst attack on U.S. soil that it is falling off the other side.
The efforts to officially turn the chapter on 9/11 started as soon as the administration took office. To commemorate the 20th anniversary of the catastrophe, Biden announced that U.S. troops would leave Afghanistan on that very day in 2021. But things didn’t go according to the plan.
As common sense dictated, the Taliban didn’t keep its end of the bargain, and the U.S. military, humiliated by the commander-in-chief, hastily left Afghanistan. This was only UNexpected apparently at the White House. The first anniversary of 9/11 during the Biden presidency was therefore marked by the defeat in war.
To demonstrate they learn nothing by history, the Biden Administration chose this September 11, 2023, to announce a deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran, fueling its struggling economy with cash. It is not simply that, like the 9/11 terrorists, the regime in Tehran is also a fundamentalist, Islamist group that supports terrorism. That would have been bad enough, but also, as the report by the 9/11 Commission showed, Iran had assisted the 9/11 terrorists before the attacks.
To add to his train wreck day, President Biden told an outright lie about whereabouts on 9/11. Speaking to the troops in Alaska, Biden said:
“I join you on this solemn day to renew our sacred vow: never forget. Never forget. We never forget. Each of us—each of those precious lives stolen too soon when evil attacked. Ground Zero in New York—I remember standing there the next day, and looking at the building. And I felt like I was looking through the gates of hell, it looked so devastating because of the way—from where you could stand.”
He emphasized “never forget” quite a few times, so, does he remember that it was not the day after, but nine days later that he showed up at Ground Zero? If he remembers, he’s a liar. If he has forgotten such a life-changing event, is he mentally equipped to be President? The trouble is that neither answer is a good one, and he has a history of both. We can look at Biden’s recent public appearances to suspect that he is not in the best mental shape, or we could use his history of repeating lies and stealing other people’s stories to boast about himself to think that he was lying. Whatever the answer in this instance, we can safely say that he is a liar, and he is not mentally fit for the job.
And last, to add insult to the injury, the National Security Council spokesperson, Adrienne Watson, used the occasion to praise Saudi Arabia on 9/11, writing, “We welcome this weekend's announcement by Saudi Arabia committing $20 billion to support President Biden's signature initiative, the Partnership for Global Infrastructure (PGI).” Saudi Arabia is transforming, and there is a lot to celebrate about the changes happening there. But it is undeniable that its past—and since discarded—campaign of promoting Islamism, at least indirectly, contributed to 9/11 and the rise of Islamic terrorism as a phenomenon. The extent of direct involvement of Saudi officials remains a mystery, and the U.S. government has kept those records classified. It is understandable that, for national security reasons, consecutive administrations have decided to keep those records secret, but it is foolish to praise Saudi Arabia on 9/11. Unless there is more to the story.
By and large, the White House treated 9/11 as a normal day—and to make a point of it, they fell off the other end. Likely, it is not simply a series of coincidences but a concerted effort to emphasize that the 9/11 era is over, and that America is done with 9/11 and that region. This is both disrespectful to the victims, their kids, and the survivors. It is also very dangerous for national security to pretend that the problem no longer exists.
After all, thanks to Biden, the people responsible for 9/11 are back in charge in Afghanistan, and last time they came to power it only took them five years to kill 3,000 people on September 11, 2001.
Note: the opinions expressed herein are those of Chuck Warren only and not his co-host Sam Stone or Breaking Battlegrounds’ staff.