Stephen Colbert Likens Taliban to Jan. 6 Protesters
Late-night talk show host Stephen Colbert compared Taliban soldiers who overtook the country of Afghanistan to the protesters who stormed Capitol Hill on Jan. 6 during a segment on his show.
The host of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” was offering his insight and opinions on President Joe Biden’s speech on Monday night, according to Fox News, in which the president defended his decision to withdraw troops from the country as the Taliban advanced.
“He’s right,” Colbert began in a released clip from the show, apparently agreeing with certain points of Biden’s speech. “We have had troops there for 20 years. They fought, they sacrificed.”
Stephen Colbert likens Trump voters to the Taliban: “Why should our soldiers be fighting radicals in a Civil War in Afghanistan? We’ve got our own on Capitol Hill.” pic.twitter.com/XztIatECGS
— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) August 17, 2021
Colbert added that the families of troops had also sacrificed “so that we wouldn’t have a terrorist attack, in America, planned in a foreign country.”
The Late Show host then hypothetically asked his audience, “Why should our soldiers be fighting radicals in a civil war in Afghanistan? We got our own on Capitol Hill.”
Upon asking his question, the video feed cut to an image of pro-Trump protesters surrounding the Capitol building on Jan. 6.
The audience let out a few laughs, despite some silence, before applauding the comparison by Colbert as he offered his insight.
“Then Biden pointed out –” Colbert continued, being interrupted by the ongoing applause, “the U.S. did everything we could for the Afghans.” The video then showed a snippet of Biden’s speech in which he criticized the “will” of the Afghan fighters.
Colbert concurred with Biden’s speech, stating that the U.S. should have “checked with the Afghan army” regarding the strength of their will, before pointing out that the Taliban now has the weapons left behind by American and Afghan forces. The host then made another joke about the Taliban’s generals.
Colbert concluded that, even if the U.S. had pulled out of the country earlier or later, “the Taliban would have taken over.”
MSNBC host Joy Reid made similar comments about Christian conservatives in the U.S. on Twitter, according to Fox, linking them to the Taliban and comparing their beliefs to the novel, “The Handmaid’s Tale.”
Several other figures have defended the president, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, for his decision, stating that Biden should be “commended for … the actions he has taken.”
Others have criticized Biden’s response, with ex-Obama administration official Brett Bruen, the former director of Global Engagement, calling on the president to fire National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.
Former President Donald Trump led calls for Biden to “resign in disgrace,” citing his failures in Afghanistan, “along with the tremendous surge in COVID, the border catastrophe, the destruction of energy independence, and our crippled economy.”
Several lawmakers have also continued to slam the president with blame for the withdrawal from Afghanistan, with House Minority Whip Steve Scalise and Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst expressing frustration toward the administration.
Following his brief speech, Biden returned to his vacation at Camp David, without taking questions from reporters.
Others in the administration attempted to downplay the situation in Afghanistan, stating that they did not see the disaster coming, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken asserting the Taliban’s offensive “happened more quickly than we anticipated.”
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