Sen. Cotton: Biden Must Order Military to 'Rescue Americans Behind Enemy Lines'
(CNS News) -- Senator Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), an Iraq and Afghanistan combat veteran, said that President Joe Biden's "ill-planned" withdrawal from Afghanistan has "stranded thousands" of Americans "behind enemy lines," and it is time for Biden to "authorize the military" to go out and "rescue Americans behind enemy lines."
The White House disclosed on Wednesday that up to 15,000 Americans may be caught in territory now controlled by the Taliban, far outside the airport in Kabul.
“President Biden’s ill-planned, chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan has stranded thousands of American citizens behind enemy lines, turning them in effect into hostages of the Taliban," said Sen. Cotton in an Aug. 19 statement.
"Instead of ordering rescue missions to save our people, as our allies have done, the Biden administration is relying on the Taliban’s good graces to ensure the safety of our citizens," he added.
"As a result, terrified Americans are being forced to run a gauntlet of armed terrorist checkpoints to reach the safety of Kabul airport," Cotton continued. "My office has received numerous reports of American citizens and Afghan allies being harassed, beaten, and abused by Taliban thugs. These reports are in addition to the televised scenes of chaos at the airport perimeter."
“This catastrophe of the president’s making must come to an end," said the senator. "It’s time for President Biden to authorize the military to stop this rolling humiliation, expand the perimeter at Kabul airport, and rescue Americans trapped behind enemy lines."
"Anything less amounts to an abandonment of our fellow Americans and a shameful abdication of duty in a moment of crisis," concluded Cotton.
At a Wednesday press conference, Defense Secretary Gen. Lloyd Austin said, “I would draw a distinction between extracting someone in extremis condition or circumstance versus going out and collecting up large numbers of American citizens.”
“We don't have the capability to go out and collect up large numbers of people," he said.
In an Aug. 14 statement, former President Donald Trump said, "Joe Biden gets it wrong every time on foreign policy, and many other issues. Everyone knew he couldn’t handle the pressure. Even Obama’s Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates, said as much.
"He ran out of Afghanistan instead of following the plan our Administration left for him—a plan that protected our people and our property, and ensured the Taliban would never dream of taking our Embassy or providing a base for new attacks against America. The withdrawal would be guided by facts on the ground.
"After I took out ISIS, I established a credible deterrent. That deterrent is now gone. The Taliban no longer has fear or respect for America, or America’s power. What a disgrace it will be when the Taliban raises their flag over America’s Embassy in Kabul. This is complete failure through weakness, incompetence, and total strategic incoherence."
Comments
Post a Comment