President Joe Biden’s botched withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan drew to a close this week, with the last American plane leaving Kabul late Monday.
While many have voiced criticism of how the exit was handled, House Republicans have made clear that they’re willing to target the Biden administration with more than just words. According to the Washington Examiner, a group of leading Republicans in the House sent a letter to Biden late last week saying they intend to investigate the disaster in Afghanistan that led to the Taliban’s latest rise to power.
A vigorous probe
Dated Aug. 27, the letter, which was obtained by the Examiner, was reportedly signed by ranking House Intelligence Committee member Devin Nunes (R-CA), ranking House Armed Services Committee member Mike Rogers (R-AL), and ranking House Foreign Affairs Committee member Michael McCaul (R-TX).
In it, the Republicans indicated that they “plan to vigorously investigate your administration’s withdrawal from Afghanistan.”
“That investigation will comprise a joint, comprehensive review by our three Committees of the intelligence, diplomatic, and military factors that led to the current fiasco,” the congressmen added, according to the Examiner.
“Chaos in Afghanistan”
They also reportedly called on Biden “to preserve all records related to your Administration’s withdrawal of U.S. personnel, including diplomatic staff, intelligence personnel, and military forces, as well as those of our allies, from Afghanistan.”
The members emphasized that they would be seeking records from “the Department of Defense, Department of State, and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, as well as the broader Intelligence Community.”
“The ongoing chaos in Afghanistan profoundly concerns the American people,” Nunes, Rogers, and McCaul wrote, as the Examiner reported. “The horrifying scenes on the ground and the resulting erosion of America’s worldwide geostrategic position raise troubling questions about your administration’s ability to competently manage a major foreign crisis.”
“A failure somewhere”
The Republicans’ letter was sent out the same day that a suicide bombing took the lives of 13 American military personnel at Kabul’s Hamid Karzai International Airport.
According to Fox News, the blast also killed more than 160 Afghans.
The Examiner noted that U.S. officials had been relying upon members of the Taliban to maintain a safe perimeter around the airport.
Speaking on the attack, Pentagon press secretary John Kirby told reporters on Friday that “there was a failure somewhere,” adding, “It could’ve been at a Taliban checkpoint.”
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