The Biden Administration was warned in July of potential catastrophe

[The Barbarian]

Now I heard Biden say that Al Qaeda was gone from Afghanistan myself,

Biden has correctly said in previous prepared remarks, including a speech on Monday, that al Qaeda has been "degraded" in Afghanistan; the terror group is widely viewed as having been substantially weakened by the 20-year US-led war.
Fact check: Biden claims al Qaeda is 'gone' from Afghanistan. Then the Pentagon confirms it's still there - CNNPolitics

 

[hedrick]

None of the criticisms I've seen have presented a realistic alternative. Many say we should have used more time. But we started in April, and told Americans to leave. Afghan leaders have known they need to make peace with the Taliban since Trump announced his deal. No matter what pace we used there would always have been a time when this kind of panic would happen.

Similarly, ISIS would always have tried to do this kind of thing, and I don't think you can ever completely stop it.

 

[Valletta]

Biden has correctly said in previous prepared remarks, including a speech on Monday, that al Qaeda has been "degraded" in Afghanistan; the terror group is widely viewed as having been substantially weakened by the 20-year US-led war.
Fact check: Biden claims al Qaeda is 'gone' from Afghanistan. Then the Pentagon confirms it's still there - CNNPolitics

I just gave you the link to the New York Times article, didn't you read it? Following is the relevant excerpt from that article, I bolded Joe's statement on Al Qaeda:

What Mr. Biden said

“What interest do we have in Afghanistan at this point with Al Qaeda gone? We went to Afghanistan for the express purpose of getting rid of Al Qaeda in Afghanistan as well as, as well as getting Osama bin Laden, and we did.”

False. Al Qaeda’s presence in Afghanistan has certainly been reduced since the United States invaded, but Mr. Biden is wrong to say that the terrorist group is no longer in the country.

 

[hedrick]

False. Al Qaeda’s presence in Afghanistan has certainly been reduced since the United States invaded, but Mr. Biden is wrong to say that the terrorist group is no longer in the country.

It will never not be in the country. Or in many other countries. Do we occupy every country with ISIS influence or influence by any other terrorist group? Let's start with Pakistan.

If we want to protect people from Sharia law, let's start with Saudi Arabia.

In a way I would have liked to see us stay. But we would have to stay for 50 years, at least, and it's hard to see the justification. Colonialism is no longer an accepted international approach, though in some cases it has its advantages.