As seems to be the norm now, there is nothing but fear and loathing displayed by the Administration and Congressional Majority when someone undertakes to expose the facts that they conceal on a daily basis.
In this case, two Congressmen, Seth Moulton (D, MA) and Jim Meijer (R, MI) took a trip to Afghanistan to see for themselves what is happening there. Both are military veterans and sit on the House Armed Services Committee. They spent their own money to fly to the United Arab Emirates and then flew on a military transport in and out of Kabul. According to their public statements, they did not occupy a seat in or out of Kabul that could be used for much needed military personnel going in or civilians coming out.
Here’s their statement in its entirety:
As veterans we care deeply about the situation on the ground at Hamid Karzai International Airport. America has a moral obligation to our citizens and loyal allies, and we must make sure that obligation is being kept. Like many veterans, we have spent the last few weeks working without sleep to try to get as many people as we could through the gates and to safety.
As Members of Congress, we have a duty to provide oversight on the executive branch. There is no place in the world right now where oversight matters more. We conducted this visit in secret, speaking about it only after our departure, to minimize the risk and disruption to the people on the ground, and because we were there to gather information, not to grandstand. We left on a plane with empty seats, seated in crew-only seats to ensure that nobody who needed a seat would lose one because of our presence.
Washington should be ashamed of the position we put our service members in, but they represent the best in America. These men and women have been run ragged and are still running strong. Their empathy and dedication to duty are truly inspiring. The acts of heroism and selflessness we witnessed at HKIA make America proud.
We came into this visit wanting, like most veterans, to push the president to extend the August 31st deadline. After talking with commanders on the ground and seeing the situation here, it is obvious that because we started the evacuation so late, that no matter what we do, we won’t get everyone out on time, even by September 11. Sadly and frustratingly, getting our people out depends on maintaining the current, bizarre relationship with the Taliban.
In the coming days, we will have more to share with our colleagues and the American people about what we learned, but after meeting with Marines, soldiers, and dedicated State Department officials on the ground—we want the world to know first and foremost that we have never been prouder to be Americans.
What a disaster. Whether the President likes it, or not, he is responsible for this disaster. He is the Commander in Chief, a constitutional responsibility of the President. He cannot foist this off on anyone else.
Clearly displaying the fear and loathing of those in power right now, Nancy Pelosi attacked the two congressmen. She’s busy carrying water for the President rather than doing her job as the leader of the House of Representatives.
The quotes in this CBS News article make it pretty clear that the Speaker of the House and the President are in complete alignment aimed at preventing any independent truth seeking or oversight. Here’s a few of them.
“We can confirm that we advise against any Americans, whether elected or not, attempting to travel to Kabul right now,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said late Tuesday. “The focus must continue to be evacuating American citizens and our Afghan partners who fought alongside us for the last twenty years, and that is best left in the hands of our the Department of Defense and the State Department.” [Eric: the same people that royally screwed this thing up for 20 years? Well, that seems smart.]
“It’s selfish, irresponsible, and dangerous for our brave women and men on the ground. They will be occupying seats on their return to the U.S. that should be going to those in need,” a U.S. official told CBS News. [Eric: according to the Congressmen, that is factually untrue.]
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi urged members of Congress not to travel to Afghanistan or the region, citing a request from the Defense Department and State Department. [Eric: I’ll just note, again, that these are the people that have got us into this situation over the past 20 years]
And it continues on in this same vein. Read the whole thing, if you can stomach it. Personally, I can’t stomach any of this. Our “elites” who aren’t worthy of any sort of meritocracy. Our “President”, who is clearly incompetent, senile, or worse. Our Congressional “Leadership” who only care to carry water for their “President”.
It is truly disgusting.
But bravo to Rep Moulton and Rep Meijer for doing their jobs!
