Washington, D.C. – Congressman Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (R-TX), released the following statement after witnessing the failure of leadership from the Biden Administration to execute a safe withdrawal from Afghanistan, calling on the President to extend the August 31st withdrawal deadline. 

“What America and the world have witnessed over the last few weeks raises the question of whether this Administration had even considered contingencies for their plan to withdraw from Afghanistan. It appears President Biden was more concerned about not passing this war onto a fifth President and taking the political win than ensuring the number one mission of getting every American and our allies out safely. Further, this Administration must show resolve to this number one mission by not rigidly adhering to the August 31, 2021, withdrawal deadline. 

“This demands that Congress conduct a full and aggressive oversight investigation, especially for those who advised the President to abandon Bagram Air Base weeks before the withdrawal was set to conclude and without looping in our Afghan allies.  In the last year, we have gone from fighting against the Taliban to leaving them with our intellectual property and weaponry. Abandoning Bagram Air Base lit the fuse for all the subsequent damage we have witnessed. This is one of the most egregious mistakes I have seen on the battlefield. 

“Those who are calling on President Biden to resign or to be impeached are serious, thoughtful legislators. I certainly understand the anxiety and gravity of the situation as it presents itself; however, the lines of Constitutional succession do not provide an actual remedy at this time.

“The current senior advisors to the President are not providing the type of advice that the President needs. Those senior advisers, including the Secretary of Defense, Secretary of Homeland Security, Secretary of State, and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, all have serious questions they must answer before Congressional Investigatory Committees. If as I believe their advice was counter to the best interest of our country, the appropriate response is removal or resignation.    

“There should be no doubt in anyone’s mind after yesterday’s bombing that the Taliban and ISIS-K have no respect for the lives of their own countrymen, let alone the 13 American servicemembers who lost their lives. America’s immediate response in the coming days should not just be aggressive words from the President’s mouth, but a swift and strong response.

“We cannot lose sight that our number one priority must remain getting Americans and those who have been faithful allies out of Afghanistan. That mission is not complete because of a specific calendar date but when their full evacuation has been accomplished.”