> But yeah, I get it, Afghanistan and Sudan won't sway elections in the west ...
Not sure if you’ve been in the coma for the last two decades, but we tried that whole quagmire in Afghanistan for years in vain.
How about you make a separate thread for this and discuss it there?
Is the Taliban a recognized government trying to maintain legitimacy on the international stage that the US pays billions to?
No. But from Isolationist and "America First" points of view - one can see Afghanistan as a place we poured vastly more money into (vs. Israel), and have vastly worse results (vs. Israel) to show for it.
Obvious Lesson: No more foreign aid, no more foreign wars, and bring our boys home.