Secretary of State Antony Blinken will finally appear before the House Foreign Affairs Committee to testify on America’s withdrawal from Afghanistan, the latest step in the committee’s dance with the secretary after it threatened to hold him in contempt of Congress.
Blinken committed to attending a hearing on Dec. 11 regarding the withdrawal that left 13 U.S. service members and nearly 200 Afghans dead after “months of good faith efforts that were too often met with stonewalling,” House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX) said in a statement Tuesday.
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The secretary was subpoenaed to appear on Sept. 24 for a hearing but did not attend due to scheduling conflicts, so the committee passed a resolution to hold him in contempt.
“It’s unfortunate the secretary agreed to appear only after my committee advanced contempt proceedings against him,” McCaul said. “While I wish he had not delayed this crucial appearance until the end of his tenure as head of the State Department, I look forward to hearing his testimony and asking poignant questions to help House Republicans and the next administration ensure nothing like this ever happens again.”
The September hearing came two weeks after the committee’s GOP majority released a lengthy report laying out several breakdowns of security and communication that led to the controversial withdrawal.
Republicans blasted Blinken for refusing to appear in September, but the Department of State had argued the secretary had been fully cooperative with the House committee. In a letter sent ahead of the hearing, Blinken said he was “profoundly disappointed” with McCaul due to the Texas Republican’s nonaccommodating stance toward his travel schedule.
Matthew Miller, a State Department spokesman, also argued at the time that Blinken testified 14 times before Congress, with four of the testimonies in front of McCaul’s committee, about the withdrawal.
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On Nov. 18, the House Rules Committee postponed a markup on the Foreign Affairs Committee’s contempt resolution. A source had told the Washington Examiner that negotiations with Blinken had been underway to find a convenient time for him to testify.
The Washington Examiner reached out to the State Department for comment.
