In a tenure filled with blunders, the Biden administration’s most embarrassing moment has to be the disastrous retreat from Afghanistan in 2021. More than a dozen American servicemembers died during the hasty withdrawal, and tens of thousands of allies were left to fend for themselves against the bloodthirsty Taliban. President Joe Biden’s approval rating began a precipitous downward slide after the catastrophe.

Democrats surely hope that replacing Biden at the top of the ticket with Vice President Kamala Harris will mean voters forget about Afghanistan and the many other Biden policy bungles. Harris has been attempting to cultivate an image of competence, expertise, and professionalism in contrast with Republican presidential nominee, former President Donald Trump. But the fact of the matter is that Harris has been in the room for almost every bad decision the Biden administration has made since coming to power in 2021. And nowhere has the Biden-Harris administration’s failure of judgment been so painfully clear as in Afghanistan. 

As much as she may want to downplay her role in the withdrawal, Harris cannot escape the public record. 

In the run-up to the last days of chaos, Harris proudly told the media about the “key role” she played in the decision to abandon Afghanistan. At the time, she praised Biden’s retreat policy as “courageous” and “the right thing to do.” Just this week, an aide to Harris told the Washington Post that she “strongly supported President Biden’s decision to end America’s longest war.” It is apparent that Harris has not meaningfully reflected on Biden’s mistakes. Indeed, she has shown no interest in correcting the course on national security.

America’s allies and enemies universally interpreted the Biden-Harris administration’s retreat from Afghanistan as a sign of weakness. Experts, including top-ranking members of the U.S. military, have said it is unlikely that Russian President Vladimir Putin would have invaded Ukraine had it not been for the fall of Kabul. 

Retreat spooked America’s allies, too. Many fear that the United States will abandon them just as Harris abandoned Afghanistan. 

Sadly, a Harris-Walz administration would be staffed by many of the architects of the present administration’s failed foreign policy. Take, for example, current Harris aide Philip Gordon. He is Harris’s top national security adviser and has a long history in Democrat foreign policy, including negotiating the failed Iran nuclear deal. As the Free Press recently reported, “he’s skeptical of U.S. military power and the efficacy of financial sanctions” and has even “developed troubling contacts with institutions and individuals close to Iran.” 

Gordon and other liberal elites, such as current national security adviser Jake Sullivan, simply do not believe in strong American leadership. Their sway over foreign policy would continue under a Harris presidency. 

The Afghanistan retreat is emblematic of the ways in which the liberal establishment wishes to pursue a policy of managed decline. They do not believe the U.S. should remain a global superpower and instead hope to usher in a new era of internationalism. Whether they are motivated by “anti-colonial” ideology or foolish confidence in their own diplomatic abilities, the Democrats seem to believe it is time to roll back American influence. The return to power for the Taliban and other terrorist groups in Afghanistan is a perfect illustration of their folly.

To be fair, Trump deserves his share of the blame for the Afghanistan debacle. He and then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo negotiated the initial withdrawal agreement with the Taliban that established a timetable for retreat, which the Biden-Harris administration kept. 

Moreover, critics are entirely correct that Trump and many of his supporters represent a new kind of isolationism that could imperil global security and American interests. In certain ways, it can be difficult to tell the differences between the preferred policies of a left-leaning Gordon or Sullivan and the so-called “restrainers” or “realists” of the Trump campaign.

And yet, we cannot lose sight of the past few years of failure under the Biden-Harris administration. From appeasing the Chinese Communist Party to slow-walking vital aid to Ukraine, Harris has done everything she can to distract from the fearful lack of leadership of the last four years. 

China, Russia, and Iran are forming a new axis to challenge American power, but the Biden-Harris administration lacks the stomach for the kind of strength the U.S. needs to deter the rise of our rivals. Instead of preparing for conflict and reestablishing deterrence, they have conducted half-hearted responses and recommitted to futile diplomacy.

The national security threats facing the U.S. call for an unshakable resolution. As adversaries in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia go on the march, the world needs an American president ready to respond with bold and firm leadership. Our retreat from Afghanistan proved that the Biden-Harris administration was not up to the task. It is doubtful a Harris-Walz administration would be much different. 

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Michael Lucchese is the founder of Pipe Creek Consulting, an associate editor of Law & Liberty, and a contributing editor toProvidence.