U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan and nine other members of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), sent a letter on Wednesday to committee Chairman Jack Reed, D-R.I., calling on him to hold hearings on the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Specifically, the senators requested sworn testimony from senior military leaders, including Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley, Commander of U.S. Central Command General Frank McKenzie, Jr., and the final Commander of U.S. Forces Afghanistan General A. Scott Miller.
Senators Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), and Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), and Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) also signed onto the letter.
“The American people, and in particular many of those who serve our country in uniform, are hurting, angry, and disappointed,” the letter says. “We owe them a clear and comprehensive understanding of what happened, why, and how best to learn from these events for the future. We owe it to our nation, those who served, their families, and our allies and partners who fought alongside us, to preserve the records of how our fight in Afghanistan concluded. The insights we gather will help prevent future loss of American blood and treasure, a solemn responsibility and sacred trust we believe all members of our committee will seek to uphold.”
Photo: Sen. Dan Sullivan met with Sec. of Defense Lloyd Austin earlier this year, when Austin toured Alaska bases.
