Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Latest News

Promotion delayed for general who oversaw Afghanistan pullout

A top general who oversaw the 82nd Airborne Division during the 2021 U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan was conspicuously left out of a large batch of military promotions approved Thursday by the Senate before it left town until December.

The apparent delay for Lt. Gen. Christopher Donahue — President Joe Biden’s nominee to lead the Army in Europe and Africa and set for promotion to four-star general — suggests a senator is holding the nomination. Donahue was one of nearly 1,000 promotions the Senate Armed Services Committee approved on Tuesday, and senators in the full chamber typically clear the decks of uniform nominees before an extended recess.

It’s unclear which senator might be delaying Donahue’s promotion and why. Such holds can be done anonymously and can still be bypassed by the full Senate, although the votes can eat up floor time.

Touted by the Army as the last U.S. service member out of Kabul, Donahue led the 82nd Airborne while it was responsible for securing the airfield at Hamid Karzai International Airport as Americans and refugees were evacuating the country ahead of the Aug 31, 2021, deadline to leave. A grainy photo of Donahue climbing aboard a cargo plane at the end of the evacuation instantly went viral at the time.

During the evacuation, a suicide bombing at the airport’s Abbey Gate killed 13 U.S. service members and more than 170 Afghans. Though U.S. Central Command conducted a review that found it was not preventable at a tactical level, some relatives of the slain service members, former generals and President-elect Donald Trump have criticized the administration’s policy decisions.

Trump met with relatives of the fallen service members and emphasized their loss in his campaign rhetoric, a move that he coordinated with his pick for national security adviser, Rep. Mike Waltz (R-Fla.). Vice President-elect JD Vance was also vocal about the attack, saying that Trump’s challenger, Vice President Kamala Harris, could “go to hell” for not holding anyone accountable.

In the last few days, there have been warning signs that those involved in the evacuation could face punishment. The Trump transition team is assembling a list of senior current and former U.S. military officers involved in the Afghanistan withdrawal and is considering the possibility of court-martialing them, NBC News reported.

Since 2022, Donahue has led the 18th Airborne Corps at Fort Liberty, North Carolina. He has also led Special Operations Joint Task Force Afghanistan and served as the Joint Chiefs of Staff’s deputy director for special operations and counterterrorism.

Senate leaders typically look to confirm most, if not all, military promotions at the end of a session — and a move to block an officer such as Donahue would be rare.

But officer promotions, which have long been uncontroversial, are increasingly becoming fair game. Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama took the unprecedented step of blockading several hundred promotions of general and flag officers for months last year in a bid to force the Pentagon to overturn policies aimed at helping troops access abortion.

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Enter Your Information Below To Receive Latest News, And Articles.

    Your information is secure and your privacy is protected. By opting in you agree to receive emails from us. Remember that you can opt-out any time, we hate spam too!

    You May Also Like

    Stock

    Art Cashin, UBS’ director of floor operations at the New York Stock Exchange and a man The Washington Post called “Wall Street’s version of...

    Stock

    Spanish retailer Mango is embarking on a bold expansion plan in the U.S. as it looks to shed its fast-fashion image and position itself...

    Editor's Pick

    Eseye, a leading provider of global IoT connectivity solutions, has announced its partnership with Sateliot, the leader in the IoT satellite connectivity landscape, dedicated...

    Stock

    The box office this weekend will be painted pink and green, with a splash of red. Universal’s “Wicked” and Paramount’s “Gladiator II” arrive ahead of the Thanksgiving...

    Disclaimer: Financetimereport.com, its managers, its employees, and assigns (collectively “The Company”) do not make any guarantee or warranty about what is advertised above. Information provided by this website is for research purposes only and should not be considered as personalized financial advice. The Company is not affiliated with, nor does it receive compensation from, any specific security. The Company is not registered or licensed by any governing body in any jurisdiction to give investing advice or provide investment recommendation. Any investments recommended here should be taken into consideration only after consulting with your investment advisor and after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company.


    Copyright © 2024 Financetimereport.com