Rep. McCaul Plans to Issue Subpoena If State Refuses Afghanistan Withdrawal Document Request

Home Overseas Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-Texas) stated Sunday he’s ready to concern a subpoena if the State Division fails to cooperate with the committee’s doc manufacturing request on the Afghanistan withdrawal.

“The State Department has not been compliant with our document request,” McCaul advised Margaret Brennan on CBS’ “Face the Nation.”

McCaul stated he met with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and had a “very cordial conversation.”

“Cooperation is always key,” McCaul stated. “But they’re not cooperating. If he fails to cooperate with my document production request by, you know, the time he testifies on March 23, I am prepared to issue a subpoena.”

McCaul led a full committee listening to final week to look at the Biden administration’s function within the abrupt evacuation of the U.S. navy from Afghanistan in August 2021, ensuing within the Taliban regaining management of the nation.

Through the closing days of U.S. navy involvement, the administration performed an evacuation effort to fly U.S. residents and Afghans out of the war-torn nation. The occasion result in a suicide bombing at Hamid Karazai Worldwide Airport that killed 13 U.S. troops and 170 civilians.

The March 9 committee listening to witnessed Marine Corps sniper Tyler Vargas-Andrews recount how his warnings of a possible suicide bomber have been disregarded by commanders moments earlier than the Kabul airport explosion.

“We had eyes on these two individuals that fit this exact description we were given from our intel assets,” Vargas-Andrews stated. “Both myself and my team leader asked for engagement authority and he responded [that] he did not have that authority, so we asked who did, and he told us he did not know and would go find out.”

McCaul stated probably the most traumatic a part of the occasions of the bombing was that Vargas-Andrews had the suicide bomber in his sights, however when it was run up the chain of command, the commanding officer stated he didn’t have the authority for permission to have interaction and by no means adopted up with the troops on who did.

“The point is they could have taken out this threat,” McCaul stated. “It could have been avoided.”

Whereas the State Division stated they’ve briefed Congress greater than 150 instances because the withdrawal, McCaul referenced Vargas-Andrews for example of data that has not been shared.

“We need these documents because this stuff has never been brought out to the public,” McCaul stated. “I intend to move forward with this investigation and want what that commanding officer was thinking when he denied permission to take out a threat and what levels did it go to within the United States government? I think those are all very important questions.”

McCaul stated that although Blinken desires to cooperate with the investigation and be clear to the American folks, the attorneys are combating the excellent doc manufacturing request that focuses on a number of areas of the administration’s planning of the withdrawal.

“It’s the dissent cable, an extraordinary measure to have 23 members of the State Department at the embassy dissenting with the policy, the action report from the ambassador, but also, the plan of evacuation. Just a simple plan of evacuation. What was your plan?” McCaul stated. “They have failed to deliver that to Congress. Those are three key areas that we want to see compliance with.”