House Committee on Foreign Affairs Hearing: “Afghanistan 2001-2021: Evaluating the Withdrawal and U.S. Policies—Part 1” 9/13/2021

On Monday, September 13, the House Foreign Affairs Committee held a hearing to discuss the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan. The majority of members expressed concern over the future of Taliban control of the country. Members largely focused on pre-withdrawal planning and evacuation processes for relevant U.S. and Afghan personnel. Other topics included vetting evacuees, humanitarian aid, U.S. intelligence capabilities, and provisions for protecting at-risk groups in Afghanistan.

Witnesses

• Antony J. Blinken – Secretary of State

Members in Attendance
Chairman Gregory Meeks (D-NY), Rep. Ami Bera (D-CA), Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA), Rep. Albio Sires (D-NJ), Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA), Rep. Ted Deutch (D-FL), Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA), Rep. Bill Keating (D-MA), Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI), Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-TX), Rep. Dina Titus (D-NV), Rep. Susan Wild (D-PA), Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA), Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN), Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Rep. Colin Allred (D-TX), Rep. Andy Levin (D-MI), Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA), Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA), Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-NJ), Rep. Andy Kim (D-NJ), Rep. Sara Jacobs (D-CA), Rep. Kathy Manning (D-NC), Rep. Jim Costa (D-CA), Rep. Juan Vargas (D-CA), Rep. Brad Schneider (D-IL), Ranking Member Michael McCaul (R-TX), Rep. Steve Chabot (R-OH), Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC), Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA), Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA), Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY), Rep. Ann Wagner (R-MO), Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL), Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN), Rep. Mark Green (R-TN), Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY), Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL), Rep. Dan Meuser (R-PA), Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY), Rep. August Pfluger (R-TX), Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY), Rep. Peter Meijer (R-MI), Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-TX), Rep. Young Kim (R-CA).