Top Stories this AM: GOP praises Taliban to spite Biden; Miami fights back against DeSantis; a surprise snake in the spice aisle

Good morning and welcome to your weekday morning roundup of the top stories you need to know.

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What's going on today:

• "It's definitely chaotic, it's definitely dangerous." A CNN journalist described the 'gauntlet' people face to reach the Kabul airport as they try to flee Afghanistan, despite US claims. Gunfire could be heard during journalist Clarissa Ward's broadcast, despite the US saying the Taliban promised safe passage for those evacuating.
• Matt Gaetz throws support toward the Taliban to spite Biden (sigh). Trump and some Republicans are praising the Taliban to criticize Biden despite years of chest-thumping over jihadist terrorism. Trump called the Taliban "smart" and said it had "good fighters," while Rep. Gaetz said it was more legitimate than the Biden administration.
• Only in Australia. A 10-foot long python surprised a woman, who happened to be a trained snake catcher, in the spice aisle of an Australian supermarket. "It definitely shocked me a little bit because I wasn't expecting it," Helaina Alati said, adding that the snake came within eight inches of her face.
• Miami-Dade goes to battle against DeSantis. Miami-Dade school board slaps down DeSantis' ban on face mask rules, becoming the third county in Florida to ignore the governor's crusade against mask mandates. The decision comes one day after education officials in the state voted to investigate and possibly punish two counties that have flouted the ban.
• I'm here for this energy. A 25-foot-tall rubber duck suddenly appeared in a Maine harbor. Residents have no idea why. "I have no idea who owns it, but it kind of fits Belfast," Harbor Master Katherine Given said. "A lot of people want to keep it here."
• That's all for now. See you tomorrow.