Samuel Case, FISM News
President Joe Biden is finding himself in increasingly hot water as politicians on both side of the aisle are demanding answers from the administration over the botched U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. The immediate ascendance of the Taliban in the region has resulted in the stranding of American citizens and allies in the country and the seizure of American military assets by terrorist insurgents.
Republicans on the House Armed Services Committee wrote a scathing letter to the President demanding to know his plan to prevent the region from becoming a hotbed for terrorism now that the Taliban have taken control, while accusing Biden of never actually having a solid withdrawal plan.
“You failed to provide us with [a plan] and based on the horrific events currently unfolding in Afghanistan, we are confident that we never received your plan because you never had one,” the Republicans wrote. “We request that you immediately provide Congress with your plan to prevent terror groups from using Afghanistan as a safe haven to recruit and train the next generation of terrorists. We demand to know how and from where our ISR, counterterrorism, and conventional forces will be used to disrupt the formation for terrorist operations.”
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Gregory Meeks (D-NY) says his committee will also be holding a hearing on the disastrous pullout. Meeks indicated he would be seeking the testimonies of both Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin. “The situation in Afghanistan is rapidly changing and it is imperative that the administration provide the American people and Congress transparency about its Afghanistan strategy,” Meeks said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) issued a blistering statement, where he attacked both President Biden and former President Trump. “The wholly inadequate agreement the Trump administration made with the Taliban did not get commitments for the Taliban to break ties with Al Qaeda, nor did it account for the day after our withdrawal,” Menendez said.
In implementing this flawed plan, I am disappointed that the Biden administration clearly did not accurately assess the implications of a rapid U.S. withdrawal. We are now witnessing the horrifying results of many years of policy and intelligence failures.
In the same statement, Menendez said that the Foreign Relations Committee will “seek a full accounting for these shortcomings,” adding, “Congress was told repeatedly that the Afghan Defense and Security Forces were up to the task, that it had the troops, equipment and willingness to fight. To see this army dissolve so quickly after billions of dollars in U.S. support is astounding.”