White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby was met with intense criticism Wednesday after he inadvertently emailed a reporter that there is “no use in responding” to veteran concerns about the Harris-Biden administration’s disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Kirby, 61, apparently intended to send his dismissive response to White House staffers but accidentally hit “reply all” on an email chain that included the Fox News reporter making the inquiry.
“Obviously no use in responding. A ‘handful’ of vets indeed and all of one stripe,” read Kirby’s email, according to the outlet.
The media question was related to comments from four veterans blasting Kirby for “trying to cover” for the Harris-Biden administration’s botched exit from Afghanistan.
“Clearly, I didn’t realize you were on the chain,” Kirby later admitted to the reporter.
The White House official’s response was deemed “callous” and shameful by many on the right.
“This is how the Biden-Harris administration talks about the well-founded concerns of our nation’s veterans?” Sen. John Thune (R-SD) wrote on X. “Just days after the anniversary of the deadly Afghanistan withdrawal. On the anniversary of 9/11. Our Gold Star families deserve better.”
“Shame!” Trump campaign senior adviser Jason Miller tweeted, adding in a separate post that the Kirby’s remarks were “stupid” and “insensitive.”
“Horrifying. Callous. Disgraceful,” former Republican National Committee communications specialist Steve Guest wrote on X.
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-Texas) said he was unsurprised but appalled by Kirby’s comments.
“Retired Rear Admiral Kirby’s comments are appalling, but sadly not surprising,” McCaul said in a statement. “The Biden-Harris administration has consistently disregarded our veterans, servicemembers, and Gold Star families over their botched withdrawal from Afghanistan.”
The White House did not respond to The Post’s request for comment.
Earlier this week, the House Foreign Affairs Committee released a scathing 350-page report on the Harris-Biden administration’s decision to pull out of Afghanistan, finding that President Biden forged ahead with his plan to withdraw from the Middle Eastern country despite objections from military officials, US allies and the Afghan government.
On Monday, Kirby dismissed the findings of the panel’s two-year-long investigation, calling it “one-sided” and “partisan.”
He also blamed former President Donald Trump for the chaotic August 2021 withdrawal, arguing that the GOP nominee cut a deal with the Taliban that forced the US military to “rush the exit.”
“President Biden, for his part, faced a stark choice when he came to office: Abide by the flawed agreement and end America’s longest war, or blow up the deal, extend the war, and see a much smaller contingent of American troops back in combat with the Taliban,” Kirby said. “He chose the former and was able to buy additional time to prepare for that withdrawal all the way into summer, and we, as a nation, are safer for it.”
