Leon Panetta calls Afghanistan a 'Bay of Pigs' moment for Biden: 'Our credibility right now is in question'

Leon Panetta: Afghanistan is a ‘Bay of Pigs’ moment for Biden

Former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta calls the Afghanistan debacle a ‘Bay of Pigs’ moment for President Joe Biden, saying U.S. credibility in the world is in question.

Former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta said Monday the unfolding debacle in Afghanistan was a “Bay of Pigs” moment for President Joe Biden, referring to the ill-fated, U.S.-backed effort to overthrow Cuban dictator Fidel Castro.

Biden has come under sharp criticism for the chaos unfolding in Afghanistan as the Taliban seizes control, and Panetta was asked by CNN’s John King what this moment meant for the president.

“In many ways, I think of John Kennedy and the Bay of Pigs, you know?” Panetta said. “It unfolded quickly and the president thought that everything would be fine and that was not the case. But President Kennedy took responsibility for what took place. I strongly recommend to President Biden that he take responsibility and admit the mistakes that were made.”

The 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion attempt was an early black eye for President John F. Kennedy, as well as a propaganda victory for Castro.

Biden is facing bipartisan criticism and media outrage over the catastrophic situation unfolding in the country following his U.S. troop withdrawal. He predicted last month the Taliban would not quickly take over the country following the U.S. exit and there would be “no circumstance where you see people being lifted off the roof of an embassy” such as during the infamous Saigon exodus in 1975.

However, the Afghan government quickly collapsed, and the Taliban took back Kabul nearly 20 years after U.S. troops drove the Islamist terror group out of the capital in 2001.

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