Good morning!

Here’s your Daily News for Tuesday, August 17.

 

1. Biden stands by withdrawal

• A defiant President Joe Biden rejected blame for chaotic scenes of Afghans clinging to U.S. military planes in Kabul in a desperate bid to flee their home country after the Taliban’s easy victory over an Afghan military that America and NATO allies had spent two decades trying to build.
• At the White House, Biden on Monday called the anguish of trapped Afghan civilians “gut-wrenching” and conceded the Taliban had achieved a much faster takeover of the country than his administration had expected. The U.S. rushed in troops to protect its own evacuating diplomats and others at the Kabul airport.
• But the president expressed no second thoughts about his decision to stick by the U.S. commitment, formulated during the Trump administration, to end America’s longest war, no matter what.
• “I stand squarely behind my decision” to finally withdraw U.S. combat forces, Biden said, while acknowledging the Afghan collapse played out far more quickly than the most pessimistic public forecasts of his administration. “This did unfold more quickly than we anticipated,” he said.
• Read more and see Biden’s speech for yourself HERE.

• Meanwhile, the Taliban is reaping the rewards of the U.S. withdrawal.
• Built and trained at a two-decade cost of $83 billion, Afghan security forces collapsed so quickly and completely — in some cases without a shot fired — that the ultimate beneficiary of the American investment turned out to be the Taliban. They grabbed not only political power but also U.S.-supplied firepower — guns, ammunition, helicopters and more.
• The Taliban captured an array of modern military equipment when they overran Afghan forces who failed to defend district centers. Bigger gains followed, including combat aircraft, when the Taliban rolled up provincial capitals and military bases with stunning speed, topped by capturing the biggest prize, Kabul, over the weekend.
• A U.S. defense official on Monday confirmed the Taliban’s sudden accumulation of U.S.-supplied Afghan equipment is enormous. The official was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and so spoke on condition of anonymity. The reversal is an embarrassing consequence of misjudging the viability of Afghan government forces — by the U.S. military as well as intelligence agencies — which in some cases chose to surrender their vehicles and weapons rather than fight.
• Read more HERE.

 

 

2. ICUs nearly at capacity in Alabama amid coronavirus surge

• Alabama’s intensive care units were near capacity Monday amid the state’s ongoing surge in COVID-19 cases.
• The state has 1,562 intensive care unit beds but had 1,560 hospitalized patients needing intensive care Monday, according to Dr. Don Williamson, the former state health officer who now heads the Alabama Hospital Association.
• “This is the greatest demand on the ICU system we’ve ever had,” Williamson said.
• Alabama has seen a surge in COVID-19 cases fueled by the highly contagious delta variant and the state’s low vaccination rate. Case and hospitalization numbers are quickly approaching what they were at the winter peak of the pandemic.
• COVID-19 patients accounted for 48% of Alabama’s intensive care unit patients Monday, Williamson said. There were 759 COVID-19 patients in intensive care, compared with a record 848 at the winter peak of the pandemic.
• Read more HERE.

 

3. Panel analyzing pandemic response delays meeting

• A meeting of the joint legislative committee analyzing how the state responded to the COVID-19 pandemic has been delayed over concerns of rising case numbers.
• The in-person meeting was originally scheduled for today, but committee co-chair Sen. Tim Melson, R-Florence, told Alabama Daily News it was delayed until Aug. 25.
• Melson said he is looking at ways to hold the next meeting over Zoom instead of in-person.
• Gov. Kay Ivey issued a limited state of emergency order on Friday that primarily is aimed at giving medical providers flexibility on staffing and capacity decisions and easier shipment of emergency equipment and supplies.
• The Alabama Department of Public Health reported 2,931 hospitalizations as of Monday, which is nearing the state’s all-time high of 3,084 in January.
• Read more from Caroline Beck HERE.

 

4. Fred brings the rain but little more

• Fred weakened from a tropical storm to a depression early Tuesday as it trekked inland, spreading heavy rains over northwest Florida, southeast Alabama and southern Georgia. The National Weather Service said it spawned several tornadoes in Georgia, and flash flooding and mudslides were possible in mountainous areas as it moves toward the mid-Atlantic states.
• No deaths have been reported from Fred, and fewer than 30,000 customers were without power in Florida and Georgia after the storm crashed ashore late Monday afternoon near Cape San Blas in the Florida Panhandle. Emergency crews were repairing downed power lines and clearing toppled trees in Fred’s aftermath.
• Meanwhile, reconnaissance aircraft found Grace regained tropical cyclone strength early Tuesday. Grace lashed earthquake-damaged Haiti as a tropical depression on Monday, dumping up to 10 inches of rain.
• Read more HERE.

 

5. Chasing the Tide: Alabama is No. 1 in preseason AP Top 25 again

• Another college football season will start with everyone chasing the Tide.
• Alabama is No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 preseason poll for fourth time in the past six seasons.
• Coming off its sixth national championship under Nick Saban, the Crimson Tide enters the season loaded with potential replacements for the record-breakers and NFL draft picks who have moved on, including Heisman Trophy winner DeVonta Smith.
• Alabama received 47 of 63 first-place votes from the panel of sports writers and broadcasters in the poll presented by Regions Bank. Oklahoma is No. 2, just ahead of No. 3 Clemson (each received six first-place votes).
• Ohio State, which lost to the Tide in last season’s championship game, is No. 4 after receiving a first-place vote. Georgia received three first-place votes and rounds out the top five.
• Auburn is unranked but received 32 votes from AP voters.
• Read more and see the full Top 25 HERE.

 

Headlines

INSIDE ALABAMA POLITICS – August 16, 2021

 

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Biden: Afghan chaos ‘gut-wrenching’ but stands by withdrawal

 

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Billions spent on Afghan army ultimately benefited Taliban

 

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – ICUs nearly at capacity in Alabama amid coronavirus surge

 

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Committee on pandemic response delays meeting due to COVID concerns

 

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Fred drenches US Southeast; Grace again a tropical storm

 

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Chasing the Tide: Alabama is No. 1 in preseason AP Top 25 again

 

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Chaos as thousands flee Afghanistan after Taliban takeover

 

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Fred strengthens slightly as it heads to Gulf coast

 

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Pelosi takes step to quell moderates’ budget rebellion

 

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Georgia wins fresh ruling in water war with Florida, Alabama

 

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Daily News Digest – August 16, 2021

 

AL.COM – ‘I have come home and literally sobbed in the shower:’ Alabama doctor on treating COVID patients

 

AL.COM – UAB, state officials coordinate free COVID testing for Alabama schools

 

AL.COM  – Geneva County sends home 400 students after close contact with COVID-19

 

AL.COM  – Alabama asks judge to sentence former Limestone sheriff to three years in jail

 

AL.COM  – Former president coming to ‘heart of Trump country’ on return to Alabama

 

AL.COM – Columnists Roy Johnson and Cameron Smith: Historic bipartisan alliance in Alabama legislature quietly bore surprising fruit; will it endure or spoil?

 

AL.COM – After nearly dying of COVID, Alabama car dealer gives away $100,000 in vaccine incentives

 

Montgomery Advertiser – Prattville man charged in ‘serious’ assault of woman

 

Montgomery Advertiser – Montgomery cancels HBCU football weekend fan events, not games, as COVID-19 cases rise

 

Montgomery Advertiser – Only 2 Alabama ICU beds available Monday as COVID-19 surge threatens hospital resources

 

WBRC Fox 6 Birmingham – House fire under investigation in Warrior

 

Decatur Daily – Large gatherings have health officials ‘shivering in our boots’

 

Decatur Daily – Mayor’s plan for additional mowing of Beltline, Sixth Avenue approved

 

Times Daily – Homeless shelters sticking to COVID safety protocols

 

Times Daily – Tropical storm impacts should be minimal for the Shoals

 

Times Daily – Weekend storms cause some street flooding, power outages

 

Anniston Star – Anniston Fire Department lieutenant hospitalized with COVID

 

Anniston Star – Oxford Fire Department rescues man trapped on burning lift

 

Anniston Star – General Fund, education fund revenues up; budget leaders cautiously watch delta variant

 

WBRC Fox 6 Birmingham – Father of Alabama CIA agent, first known American killed in Afghanistan, calls on leadership to ‘fix mistake’ upon withdrawal from the troubled country

 

WBRC Fox 6 Birmingham – What should parents do if their child was exposed to COVID-19 in class?

 

Tuscaloosa News – DCH Health Systems offers back-to-school COVID-19 vaccination clinic

 

Tuscaloosa News – Tuskegee city councilman Johnny Ford focused on Confederate statue’s removal

 

Tuscaloosa News – Tuscaloosa to host 2023 Dixie Youth Baseball World Series

 

YellowHammer News – U.S. Rep. Carl: ‘Jimmy Carter is probably sitting on the edge of his bed cheering today because finally there’s a president worse than Jimmy Carter’

 

YellowHammer News – Lawsuit seeks to force Alabama into distributing federal unemployment dollars

 

Gadsden Times – Area partners work with vendor to advance COVID-19 testing technology

 

Gadsden Times – Overall population in Etowah County drops from 2010, according to census results

 

Gadsden Times – Only 2 Alabama ICU beds available Monday as COVID-19 surge threatens hospital resources

 

Dothan Eagle – GOP hits Biden despite divides over Afghanistan withdrawal

 

Dothan Eagle – Archaeologists find skeleton, evidence of Greek in Pompeii

 

Dothan Eagle – Biden: Afghan chaos ‘gut-wrenching’ but stands by withdrawal

 

Opelika-Auburn News – Archaeologists find skeleton, evidence of Greek in Pompeii

 

Opelika-Auburn News – Biden: Afghan chaos ‘gut-wrenching’ but stands by withdrawal

 

Opelika-Auburn News – Fred drenches US Southeast; Grace again a tropical storm

 

WSFA Montgomery – Father of Alabama CIA agent, first known American killed in Afghanistan, calls on leadership to ‘fix mistake’ upon withdrawal from the troubled country

 

WSFA Montgomery – Chief: Suspect fought Millbrook police, fled despite stun gun

 

WSFA Montgomery – HMMA limiting production this week due to supply shortage

 

WAFF Huntsville – Former Limestone County Sheriff, Huntsville Police Officer to be sentenced this week

 

WAFF Huntsville – Veterans Affairs: Thinking about Afghanistan? Here are some resources to help

 

WAFF Huntsville – AP FACT CHECK: Biden skirts US failures in Afghan chaos

 

WKRG Mobile – Gautier man killed after being struck by semi on U.S. 98 in George County

 

WKRG Mobile – Sources: US to recommend COVID vaccine boosters at 8 months

 

WKRG Mobile – UAB, state agencies launch free COVID-19 testing program for Alabama schools

 

WTVY Dothan – EMA officials preparing for Tropical Storm Fred aftermath

 

WTVY Dothan – EMA: “Have a plan in place now ahead of Tropical Storm Fred”

 

WTVY Dothan – Georgia wins fresh ruling in water war with Florida, Alabama

 

WASHINGTON POST – 72 hours at Camp David: Inside Biden’s lagging response to the fall of Afghanistan

 

WASHINGTON POST – Biden blames others for swift collapse in Afghanistan, defends his decision to withdraw troops

 

WASHINGTON POST – Biden’s promise to restore competence to the presidency is undercut by chaos in Afghanistan

 

NEW YORK TIMES – Live Updates: Taliban Promise No Reprisal Killings, but Afghans Are Desperate to Escape

 

NEW YORK TIMES – U.S. to Advise Boosters for Most Americans 8 Months After Vaccination

 

NEW YORK TIMES – Haiti Quake Destroyed Many Churches, Shredding a Mainstay of Support

 

WALL STREET JOURNAL – Extremists Celebrate Taliban Takeover of Afghanistan on Social Media

 

WALL STREET JOURNAL – Biden Defends Afghanistan Pullout Amid Bipartisan Criticism

 

WALL STREET JOURNAL – Taliban Conquest of Afghanistan Scrambles the Diplomatic Map

 

 

Front Pages (images link to newspaper websites, which you should visit and patronize)