Pompeo backs Trump’s decision to invite Taliban to Camp David

FELICIA SONMEZ AND JEFF STEIN U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Sunday defended President Donald Trump’s now-scuttled plan to host members of the Taliban leadership and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani at Camp David, amid a backlash from members of both parties.

In interviews on all five major Sunday morning news shows, Pompeo argued Trump was willing to take a political risk to strike a deal on reducing U.S. troops in Afghanistan. But he conceded that the talks are dead “for the time being” and said the U.S. has recalled Zalmay Khalilzad, the chief U.S. negotiator in the process.

“If you’re going to negotiate peace, you often have to deal with some pretty bad actors,” Pompeo said on ABC News’ This Week. “Some pretty bad actors have travelled through that place throughout recorded history.”

The summit would have taken place just ahead of the 18th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, which led the U.S. to invade Afghanistan.

Rep. Liz Cheney, the No. 3 Republican in the House, was among those who had sharply criticized Trump over the move to invite the Taliban.

“Camp David is where America’s leaders met to plan our response after al-Qaida, supported by the Taliban, killed 3000 Americans on 9/11,” Cheney said Sunday morning on Twitter. “No member of the Taliban should set foot there. Ever.”

Last week, Khalilzad announced that a deal had been reached “in principle” under which the U.S. would partially withdraw its troops in exchange for the Taliban renouncing al-Qaida, which had orchestrated the 2001 attacks.

But talks began to waver after attacks by the Taliban, including one that killed a U.S. soldier.