WASHINGTON, D.C. – Yesterday, Rep. Burgess Owens (UT-04) signed a letter alongside House Freshman Republicans to President Biden denouncing his administration’s catastrophic failures in Afghanistan. The lawmakers urged the administration to immediately prioritize the evacuation of American citizens and the many Afghans who served alongside U.S. forces. 

“We write today as members of the House Republican Freshman Class to express our deep concern with the rapidly deteriorating situation in Afghanistan, and to highlight the plight of Americans and the many Afghans who worked alongside U.S. forces and have still not been evacuated. While we may be new to Congress, the complete lack of leadership and direction that has come from your administration in the midst of this ongoing crisis has not been lost on us. 

“As you oversee the final withdrawal from Afghanistan, we call on your administration to urgently prioritize the evacuation of American citizens, security of the airfield, and the evacuation of loyal Afghans who served alongside U.S. forces. We must safely and expeditiously get Americans and our Afghan partners out of harm’s way. Leaving Afghan allies behind would almost certainly seal their fate and would have harmful and lasting repercussions for our nation that cannot be overlooked. 

“With these grave concerns in mind, we ask that you provide a briefing to Congress as soon as possible on your administration’s plan to evacuate Americans and Afghan allies. We would also ask that you brief our members on your plan going forward to prevent terrorists from capitalizing on the instability in Afghanistan. As members of Congress, we also need to understand how and why your administration had such a poor grasp of the situation on the ground in Afghanistan. The American people and our nation’s veterans who served in Afghanistan deserve to have a full accounting of the diplomatic, defense, and intelligence failures that led to the crisis we are witnessing today.”

Read the full letter here.

###