{"id":1082385,"date":"2021-12-03T23:28:29","date_gmt":"2021-12-04T04:28:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1082385"},"modified":"2021-12-03T23:28:31","modified_gmt":"2021-12-04T04:28:31","slug":"exclusive-illinois-esther-joy-king-after-wild-wild-west-afghanistan-rescue-effort-i-know-people-who-are-still-in-kabul","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/exclusive-illinois-esther-joy-king-after-wild-wild-west-afghanistan-rescue-effort-i-know-people-who-are-still-in-kabul\/","title":{"rendered":"Exclusive \u2013 Illinois\u2019 Esther Joy King After \u2018Wild Wild West\u2019 Afghanistan Rescue Effort: I Know People Who Are Still in Kabul"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">42<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fexclusive-illinois-esther-joy-king-after-wild-wild-west-afghanistan-rescue-effort-i-know-people-who-are-still-in-kabul%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1082385&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p class=\"subheading\">An Illinois Republican with ties to Afghanistan said that she aided in the August U.S. evacuation efforts after Taliban forces took over the country and that she knows people who are still stuck there.<\/p>\n<p>Esther Joy King, who was recently promoted to captain in the U.S. Army Reserve Judge Advocate General (JAG) Corps, told Breitbart News on Wednesday that from her military background and from being a former aid worker in Afghanistan, she has a \u201cvery personal connection\u201d to the country and found President Joe Biden\u2019s withdrawal process to be a \u201ctragic situation.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"D-ROS-B1\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B1\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"gmxrevmore\" class=\"H\"><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cI know people that are even still in Kabul,\u201d King said after the Taliban\u2019s fast-paced surge in August prompted Biden to lead a rushed mission to evacuate American citizens and Afghan allies from the country.<\/p>\n<p>The hasty withdrawal lasted roughly two weeks, and, amid the chaos, a bombing outside of the Kabul airport \u2014 where the evacuation mission was confined to \u2014 killed 13 U.S. servicemembers and more than 100 Afghans.<\/p>\n<p>Days later, just before the conclusion of the withdrawal, the Department of Defense carried out a drone strike in an effort to thwart what it perceived to be an imminent ISIS-K attack. The drone strike instead&nbsp;<a class=\"x5l\" title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.defense.gov\/News\/News-Stories\/Article\/Article\/2780257\/dod-august-29-strike-in-kabul-tragic-mistake-kills-10-civilians\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">killed<\/a>&nbsp;ten innocent Afghans, including \u201cup to\u201d seven children, according to the agency. \u201cThe strike was a tragic mistake,\u201d the head of U.S. Central Command, Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, said.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B2\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<p>During the disastrous withdrawal process, a scramble ensued to evacuate people terrified of remaining inside the Afghanistan borders under the rule of the Taliban, a radical, repressive group known for its history of human rights violations, particularly against&nbsp;<a class=\"x5l\" title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/wnet\/wideangle\/uncategorized\/a-woman-among-warlords-womens-rights-in-the-taliban-and-post-taliban-eras\/66\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">women<\/a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/asia\/2021\/11\/03\/report-taliban-making-kill-list-of-gay-afghans\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">gay<\/a>&nbsp;individuals.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_17894618\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" readability=\"37\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/GettyImages-1234713733.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-17894618\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/GettyImages-1234713733.jpg\" alt=\"TOPSHOT - Afghan people sit as they wait to leave the Kabul airport in Kabul on August 16, 2021, after a stunningly swift end to Afghanistan&#039;s 20-year war, as thousands of people mobbed the city&#039;s airport trying to flee the group&#039;s feared hardline brand of Islamist rule. (Photo by Wakil Kohsar \/ AFP) (Photo by WAKIL KOHSAR\/AFP via Getty Images)\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Afghan people sit as they wait to leave the Kabul airport on August 16, 2021, after a stunningly swift end to Afghanistan\u2019s 20-year war, as thousands of people mobbed the city\u2019s airport trying to flee the group\u2019s feared hardline brand of Islamist rule. (WAKIL KOHSAR\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cI started working my military networks. I started calling everybody I know. \u2018Hey, do you know anyone at the Kabul airport. Do you know anyone? Do you know anyone?\u2019\u201d said King, who was one of many with connections to Afghanistan who sought to skirt the bureaucracy and red tape of the State Department, which was self-admittedly ill-equipped to handle the scenario.<\/p>\n<p>King\u2019s first job out of college was to work to aid women in Afghanistan, but her parents, who were doing Christian missionary work at that same time, moved to Afghanistan to be with King and opened a school there as well.<\/p>\n<p>During the withdrawal, King said she \u201cwas part of the Wild Wild West civilian effort\u201d and that she \u201cgot 51 young girls from [her] parents\u2019 high school out of Kabul.\u201d She added that she had a \u201cfront row seat to the horrors\u201d that took place in Afghanistan, like \u201cyoung 15-year-old girls being beat up by the Taliban because our State Department outsourced visa checks to Taliban hooligans right in front of the airport.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>King is now running for Congress in Illinois\u2019 17th District to replace retiring Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-IL). King first ran for Congress last year and narrowly lost to incumbent Bustos by four points, but she said she is now more \u201cfired up\u201d after the August fiasco.<\/p>\n<p>King said, \u201cIt was a botched effort that to me is the line in the sand between just a downhill effort and falling off a cliff for the Biden administration, and I was fired up running for Congress previously, but now I am full speed ahead. I\u2019ve got fire in my belly because we\u2019ve got to have accountability here in Washington, DC.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>King\u2019s comments came during an interview at the end of an event hosted by Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) at the Republican National Committee headquarters on Wednesday. Stefanik&nbsp;<a title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/politics\/2021\/12\/01\/exclusive-elise-stefanik-there-is-nothing-more-terrifying-to-a-democrat-than-conservative-women\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">held<\/a>&nbsp;the event to introduce King and seven other congressional candidates whom Stefanik\u2019s organization, E-PAC, has endorsed in their races next year.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\" readability=\"8.4295532646048\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">\ud83d\udea8\ud83d\udea8\ud83d\udea8<\/p>\n<p>Meet our <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/EPAC?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#EPAC<\/a> 2022 Majority Makers!  <\/p>\n<p>These <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/GOPWomen?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#GOPWomen<\/a> are fired up &amp; ready to build on the historic success of 2020 &amp; <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/FirePelosi?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#FirePelosi<\/a> once and for all! \ud83d\udc81\ud83c\udffb\u200d\u2640\ufe0f\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83d\udc81\ud83c\udffb\u200d\u2640\ufe0f\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/FFLAhWkUJP\">pic.twitter.com\/FFLAhWkUJP<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Elise Stefanik (@EliseStefanik) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/EliseStefanik\/status\/1465773422584254466?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 30, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><em>Write to Ashley Oliver at <a href=\"mailto:aoliver@breitbart.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">aoliver@breitbart.com<\/a>. Follow her on Twitter at <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/asholiver\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">@asholiver<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>An Illinois Republican with ties to Afghanistan said that she aided in the August U.S. evacuation efforts after Taliban forces took over the country and that she knows people who &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":49,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1082385","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1082385","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/49"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1082385"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1082385\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1082385"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1082385"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1082385"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}