[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1469 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. RES. 1469
Ensuring accountability for key officials in the Biden-Harris
administration responsible for decisionmaking and execution failures
throughout the withdrawal from Afghanistan.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
September 19, 2024
Mr. McCaul submitted the following resolution; which was referred to
the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on
Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the
Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall
within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Ensuring accountability for key officials in the Biden-Harris
administration responsible for decisionmaking and execution failures
throughout the withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Whereas, throughout the Biden-Harris administration, key White House, National
Security Council, Department of State, and Department of Defense
officials prioritized the politics and optics of the withdrawal from
Afghanistan over the security of United States personnel and civilians
on the ground and failed to plan for foreseeable contingencies, causing
a chaotic, precipitous withdrawal that resulted in the death of 13
servicemembers and the wounding of 45 servicemembers in the Abbey Gate
terrorist attack on August 26, 2021;
Whereas, in 2020, the Trump administration negotiated a conditional plan to
withdraw from Afghanistan called ``The Agreement for Bringing Peace to
Afghanistan'', commonly known as the Doha Agreement, which required the
Taliban to cease terrorist activities, renounce linkages with al Qaeda,
reduce violence, establish a ceasefire, and participate in Afghan-to-
Afghan negotiations with the Government of Afghanistan;
Whereas the Biden-Harris administration was determined to withdraw from
Afghanistan regardless of the Doha Agreement and the costs of
withdrawal;
Whereas, in 2021, under the Biden-Harris administration, Special Representative
for Afghanistan Reconciliation, Zalmay Khalilzad, baselessly asserted
the Taliban would honor their commitments and respect basic human
rights;
Whereas, in 2021, President Biden selected National Security Advisor, Jake
Sullivan to conduct an interagency review of the policy of the United
States toward Afghanistan, including the Taliban's compliance with the
Doha Agreement;
Whereas the review process led by National Security Advisor Sullivan, Deputy
National Security Advisor Jonathan Finer, and Homeland Security Advisor
Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall completely disregarded the failure of the
Taliban to comply with the Doha Agreement, did not seek input from key
government officials, and blatantly ignored warnings from senior
national security experts and allies of the United States that a
complete withdrawal of troops would cause a total unraveling and
collapse of the Government of Aghanistan;
Whereas President Biden, supported by Vice President Harris, issued a ``go-to-
zero order'' without any regard for the safety of Americans and without
making appropriate plans for noncombatant evacuation operations;
Whereas the Department of State's leadership responsible for the safety of
embassy personnel and civilian evacuation plans included Secretary of
State Antony Blinken, Deputy Secretary of State Brian McKeon, and
Counselor for the Department of State Derek Chollet;
Whereas, during the military withdrawal from April to July 2021, Secretary of
State Blinken, Ambassador Ross Wilson, other Department of State
officials, and the National Security Council willfully disregarded
warnings of the Taliban's imminent takeover in Afghanistan and instead
increased the footprint of Embassy Kabul rather than plan for a
noncombatant evacuation operation;
Whereas, in early August 2021, as the Taliban made gains across Afghanistan,
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy
Colin Kahl, and other senior officials purportedly advised that
positioning United States military forces to assist with a noncombatant
evacuation operation was not immediately necessary, contrary to urgent
warnings from United States military personnel on the ground;
Whereas Secretary of State Blinken and his State Department did not call for a
noncombatant evacuation operation until the Taliban began marching into
Kabul on August 15, 2021;
Whereas Secretary of State Blinken and his State Department had not made
determinations about who would be eligible for evacuation, and had not
effectuated agreements with third countries to serve as transit points
prior to the noncombatant evacuation operation;
Whereas the willful refusal to plan for a timely civilian evacuation caused
chaos in Kabul and an untenable security situation at the Hamid Karzai
International Airport;
Whereas, on August 26, 2021, the Biden-Harris administration's chaotic,
precipitous withdrawal, willful refusal to properly plan for a
noncombatant evacuation operation, and decision to rely on the Taliban
to run checkpoints surrounding the airport resulted in a terrorist
attack by ISIS-K at Abbey Gate that killed 185 people, including 13
United States servicemembers;
Whereas the suicide bomber at Abbey Gate was among thousands of militants
released by the Taliban from Afghan prisons as they marched on Kabul;
Whereas, in August 2021, the Biden-Harris administration left behind
approximately 1,000 Americans;
Whereas the Biden-Harris administration left behind $7,000,000,000 worth of
United States weapons and up to $57,000,000 in United States currency
that could be used by the Taliban and other terrorist regimes;
Whereas President Biden, Vice President Harris, National Security Advisor
Sullivan, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, White House National
Security Communications Advisor, and Defense Department Spokesperson
John Kirby, and the Department of State Spokesperson Ned Price
repeatedly and materially misrepresented to the people of the United
States the state of affairs in Afghanistan and the withdrawal;
Whereas, since the Biden-Harris administration's withdrawal, the Taliban has
carried out brutal reprisal killings of Afghan Government officials and
individuals who assisted the United States and our allies, and created a
safe haven for terrorist groups who seek to harm the United States;
Whereas the Biden administration had been warned the precipitous withdrawal
would cause women's rights to ``go back to the Stone Age'', and since
the withdrawal, women's rights have been rescinded and child marriages
have skyrocketed;
Whereas the Biden-Harris administration's catastrophic withdrawal has emboldened
our adversaries, and once again made the United States vulnerable to
terrorist attacks;
Whereas the Biden-Harris administration refuses any accountability for the
disastrous withdrawal; instead, Under Secretary of Defense Colin Kahl
said ``Americans should be immensely proud'' and Press Secretary Psaki
stated the withdrawal was ``a success'';
Whereas Vice President Harris said she was the last person in the room before
President Biden made the final decision on the withdrawal and was
described by an advisor as being ``100 percent all in'' on the decision;
and
Whereas our Nation's most senior leaders, including the President and Vice
President, failed in their responsibilities on behalf of the people of
the United States and have not been held accountable for the death and
destruction their failures caused: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives condemns each of the
following individuals for their role in the Biden-Harris
administration's withdrawal from Afghanistan and noncombatant
evacuation operation, which led to the injury and death of United
States servicemembers, injury and death of Afghan civilians,
abandonment of American civilians and our Afghan allies, and harm to
the national security and international stature of the United States:
(1) Joseph R. Biden, President of the United States.
(2) Kamala D. Harris, Vice President of the United States.
(3) Jake Sullivan, National Security Advisor.
(4) Jonathan Finer, Assistant to the President and Deputy
National Security Advisor.
(5) Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall, Assistant to the President
for Homeland Security and Deputy National Security Advisor.
(6) John Kirby, White House National Security
Communications Advisor; former Spokesperson, the Department of
Defense.
(7) Jen Psaki, Former Press Secretary, White House.
(8) Antony Blinken, Secretary, the Department of State.
(9) Brian McKeon, Former Deputy Secretary of State for
Management and Resources, the Department of State.
(10) Ross Wilson, Ambassador and former Chief of Mission to
United States Embassy Kabul, Afghanistan, the Department of
State.
(11) Zalmay Khalilzad, Ambassador and former United States
Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation, the
Department of State.
(12) Ned Price, Deputy to the United States Representative
to the United Nations and former Spokesperson, the Department
of State.
(13) Lloyd Austin, Secretary, the Department of Defense.
(14) Derek Chollet Chief of Staff to the Secretary, the
Department of Defense; Former Counselor, the Department of
State.
(15) Colin Kahl, Former Under Secretary of Defense for
Policy, the Department of Defense.
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