House GOP readies formal rebukes over Afghanistan withdrawal

Over the weekend, House Foreign Affairs Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas, introduced a bill against officials alleged to have played a hand in the United States’ 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan.

The measure condemns 15 individuals including President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken.

 The withdrawal of troops and evacuation of non-combatant personnel from Afghanistan “led to the injury and death of United States servicemembers, injury and death of Afghan civilians, abandonment of American civilians and our Afghan allies, according to the bill. It also harmed the national security and international stature of the United States. 

The bill, a resolution of condemnation, would have no binding power if approved.

 What are Republicans condemning? Thirteen American servicemembers died in a suicide bombing on Aug. 26, 2021 at the Hamid Karzai International Airport. The attack was carried out by a member of the Islamic State group of terrorists. The airport had become the only evacuation site as the Taliban quickly retook Afghanistan.

 The bill comes after House Republicans in the Foreign Affairs Committee published the findings of their two-year investigation into the withdrawal from Afghanistan. The 300-page report details the days leading up to the evacuation, the administration’s posture towards the situation, and coordination problems throughout the operation.

 Many lawmakers on the committee believe that the attack could have been avoided had the Biden administration taken proper precautions to ensure an orderly withdrawal. Instead, they contend that politics, mismanagement, and a lack of foresight facilitated the attack. 

Dig deeper: Read my report about what Republicans say accountability looks like now.