National Review editor roasted for writing 'fan fic' about how Trump would have made the Taliban do his bidding

Although President Joe Biden made it clear from the outset that it was his decision to leave Afghanistan, the manner in which he did so was constrained to some extent by how former President Donald Trump cut a deal with the Taliban to withdraw from the country last year.

Despite this, some Republican commentators are still insisting that none of the current challenges in evacuating Afghanistan would have been an issue if Trump were still president, and one of the biggest purveyors of this idea is National Review editor Rich Lowry.

Lowry's comment was roundly mocked and dismantled by commenters on social media — with writer Matthew Yglesias taking particular issue with it and noting all the times Trump failed to "establish leverage" with hostile foreign actors.