House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy called on Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi to bring Congress back to session before Aug. 31 on Thursday after at least 12 U.S. service members have reportedly been killed in Afghanistan.
McCarthy said Congress should come back into session from recess so that members can be briefed on what is going on in Afghanistan after the Taliban retook the country in a matter of days.
“Horrific. Our enemies have taken advantage of the chaotic nature of Biden’s withdrawal. Speaker Pelosi must bring Congress back before Aug 31 so we can be briefed thoroughly by the Administration and prohibit the withdrawal of our troops until every American is safely out,” McCarthy tweeted.
Horrific. Our enemies have taken advantage of the chaotic nature of Biden’s withdrawal.
Speaker Pelosi must bring Congress back before Aug 31 so we can be briefed thoroughly by the Administration and prohibit the withdrawal of our troops until every American is safely out.
— Kevin McCarthy (@GOPLeader) August 26, 2021
Pelosi’s deputy chief of staff Drew Hammill responded to McCarthy’s tweet, saying, “Right now, American heroes are risking & giving their lives to execute an extraordinarily dangerous evacuation, & the Minority Leader wants to defund the mission & tie the Commander in Chief’s hands in the middle of the most dangerous days of the operation.”
Right now, American heroes are risking & giving their lives to execute an extraordinarily dangerous evacuation, & the Minority Leader wants to defund the mission & tie the Commander in Chief’s hands in the middle of the most dangerous days of the operation. https://t.co/j94blZVaOK
— Drew Hammill (@Drew_Hammill) August 26, 2021
Speaker of the House Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) speaks during a weekly news conference at the U.S. Capitol July 28, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
“What’s not going to help evacuate American citizens is more empty stunts & distraction from the Minority Leader who sat idly by as Pres. Trump proudly negotiated with the Taliban. The Biden Administration has repeatedly briefed the Congress & providing frequent updates each day,” Hammill said in a follow-up tweet.
The Taliban has continued to say it will not allow the U.S. to extend the Aug. 31 deadline. Meanwhile, House Republicans received a classified briefing Tuesday, after which McCarthy said he is “less confident” about the deadline. (RELATED: Biden Reportedly Keeping Aug. 31 Afghanistan Withdrawal Date Despite Worry Surrounding Evacuations)
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell criticized Biden’s decision to pull the U.S. military out of Afghanistan in a Tuesday interview with Fox News. He went so far as to call it one of the greatest foreign policy disasters in American history. He has been joined by a majority of Republicans in criticizing Biden for the way he has handled the situation. (RELATED: McConnell Rips Biden’s Handling Of Afghanistan As ‘One Of The Greatest Foreign Policy Disasters’ In US History)
