Ernst Continues Efforts to Demand Transparency, Accountability Following Biden’s Disastrous Afghanistan Withdrawal

WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), a veteran of the Global War on Terrorism and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, is continuing her efforts to demand transparency and accountability following the Biden administration’s disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan.

 

“While other crises of the Biden administration’s making may now dominate the front page, their disastrous, haphazard, and inexcusable exit from Afghanistan—that resulted in the death of 13 servicemembers and left Americans and our allies behind enemy lines—demands Congress’ attention and scrutiny. These efforts build on my work to provide transparency and accountability surrounding the withdrawal and the Taliban’s subsequent rise to power, and will help ensure the safety of all Americans in the future,” said Senator Ernst. 

 

Background :

Ernst is backing legislation to require the director of national intelligence to report to Congress any time it is determined that U.S. military equipment that was abandoned in Afghanistan, Iraq, or Syria is used in a terrorist attack against the United States or its allies or used in nearby regions. The bill would require notification of any known details relating to the equipment used in the attack; the date on which, and the location from which, the equipment left U.S. custody; attribution for the orchestrators of the attack; and the total number of deaths and casualties caused by the attack.

 

Ernst is also supporting a bill to require the U.S. State Department to release a public, unclassified version of the July 13, 2021, internal dissent channel cable that reportedly warned of the rapidly deteriorating security situation in Afghanistan and the Taliban’s ability to capture Kabul. The bill would also require the State Department to provide Congress with a classified version of the dissent cable, removing any personally identifiable information of the senders.