Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) is taking aim at Secretary of State Antony Blinken and President Joe Biden for the administration’s handling of the withdrawal from Afghanistan and failure to evacuate every Afghan ally.
During a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing on Afghanistan with Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday, McCaul said in his opening statement, “Mr. Secretary, the American people don’t like to lose, especially not to the terrorists. But that is exactly what has happened. This has emboldened the Taliban and our adversaries.”
“To make matters worse, we abandoned Americans behind enemy lines. We left behind interpreters who you, Mr. Secretary, and the president both promised to protect. I can summarize this in one word: Betrayal. The America I know keeps its promises. The most important promise in our military is ‘no man left behind,’ ‘no one left behind.’ But you broke this promise,” he continued.
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"Mr. Secretary, the American people don't like to lose, especially not to the terrorists. But that is exactly what has happened," GOP Rep. Mike McCaul tells Sec. of State Blinken during hearing on Afghanistan. https://t.co/iG4W8en5ok pic.twitter.com/4j1k8y5OpX
— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) September 13, 2021
The U.S. completed its withdrawal from Afghanistan late last month, and officials said American forces helped evacuated more than 120,000 people, as IJR reported.
Still, Gen. Frank McKenzie told reporters, “There’s a lot of heartbreak associated with this departure. We did not get everybody out that we wanted to get out.”
“But I think if we’d stayed another 10 days, we wouldn’t have gotten everybody out,” he added.
In remarks after the completion of the withdrawal, Blinken vowed that the U.S. would “continue our relentless efforts to help Americans, foreign nationals and Afghans leave Afghanistan if they choose.”
“The international chorus on this is strong, and it will stay strong. We will hold the Taliban to their commitment on freedom of movement for foreign nationals, visa holders, at-risk Afghans,” he added.