Many Republicans have complained about the ruling being premature, but other GOP lawmakers have applauded U.S. troops for eventually returning home. Most Democrats have said they support Biden’s desire to finally end the longest war in U.S. history, but some have said they are concerned about the loss of difficult profits in Afghanistan.
Biden plans to announce Wednesday that he will withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan by September 11, if not sooner, a senior administration official said Tuesday. The roster misses a May 1 deadline set by Trump for withdrawal, but still means most U.S. troops will leave the country in the coming months.
The senior administration official said the withdrawal would not be based on conditions. Some U.S. troops will remain in Afghanistan to protect the U.S. embassy, although the exact number is not yet known, the official said.
Republican Hawks responded quickly.
“The withdrawal of US forces precisely from Afghanistan is a serious mistake. It is a retreat in the face of an enemy that has not yet been defeated and the leadership of the US leadership,” said Mitch McConnell, a Republican from Kentucky, said. “Leaders in both parties, including me, have expressed criticism when the previous government pushed the concept of a reckless withdrawal from Syria and Afghanistan.”
South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham, another hawk who has repeatedly criticized the Obama administration’s withdrawal from Iraq and the disadvantages in Afghanistan, said a complete withdrawal was “stupid as dirty and demonic dangerous.”
“President Biden has essentially canceled an insurance policy against another 9/11,” Graham said.
And Senator Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma, the top Republican in the Senate’s Armed Services Committee, said it was “outrageous” and had no justification.
But some Republicans who joined McConnell in attacking Biden on several fronts held a different view – even beyond libertarians like Senator Rand Paul, the Kentucky Republican who fought his GOP colleagues while pushing Trump to To remove US troops from the Middle East.
Senator Ted Cruz, a Republican in Texas, said Tuesday he is “glad the troops are coming home.”
“Bringing our troops home should not be seen as a sign that America will be less vigilant in protecting American lives and those of our allies, but we can do so without a permanent military presence in a hostile environment. terrain, “Cruz said.
On the Democratic side, there was much praise for Biden’s decision by lawmakers who had long been skeptical of an expanded U.S. presence in the Middle East.
“For nearly twenty years, we have adopted an expensive war-based approach to national security and terrorism policies without any clear endgame,” said Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Democratic Massachusetts Democrat. “As our withdrawal draws years, President Biden acknowledges the reality that our continued presence there does not make the US or the world safer.”
However, some Democrats have said they are concerned about the premature withdrawal from the country and the loss of profits gained, especially as regards women’s rights in Afghanistan.
“Although this decision was taken in cooperation with our allies, the United States has sacrificed too much to bring stability to Afghanistan to ensure a secure future without assured assurance,” the New Hampshire senator wrote. “It undermines our commitment to the Afghan people, especially Afghan women.”
The top national security democrats have said they support the decision, but they acknowledge the risks involved.
Senator Bob Menendez of New Jersey, chairman of the Senate’s Foreign Relations, told reporters Tuesday he wants to get troops home after a very long war, but is concerned that “we are not losing what we wanted to achieve.”
Menendez, who has not yet been briefed on the decision, warned on Tuesday that if there is a “decline in civil society” after US troops leave Afghanistan later this year, he will want to stop financial support for the country, something that the ability to rebuild.
“I will certainly not offer any support to Afghanistan if there is a deterioration in civil society, the rights that women could achieve. And if the Taliban ultimately does not fulfill its obligations, there will be consequences and one of them will be that “There will be no money flowing, so I do not know how they are going to rebuild the country,” the New Jersey Democrat said.
Senate Armed Services chairman Jack Reed, a Rhode Island Democrat, described the move as a “transition rather than a closure.” Reed told reporters he spoke with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on Monday.
“We must also maintain a presence for regional stability. We have two nuclear-armed forces in the region, particularly with regard to Pakistan. And so we will continue active diplomacy and active counter-terrorism,” Reed said. “This is a very difficult decision by the president. I think it was shaped by a number of factors. I think the agreement itself really gave the Taliban the green light that we could no longer be there after 1 May. we inherited it. “
Asked if he supported the decision to withdraw, he said: “You know, there is no easy answer.”
CNN’s Jennifer Hansler, Ted Barrett, Ali Zaslav, Manu Raju, Lauren Fox, Clare Foran and Kevin Liptak contributed to this report.