The House is on the verge of a major showdown with the Biden administration over the chaotic withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan in 2021. The House Foreign Affairs Committee has voted to advance a contempt resolution against Secretary of State Antony Blinken, potentially setting him up for a historic censure. This would mark the first time in history that a Secretary of State has been held in contempt of Congress.
The move comes after Blinken refused to comply with a subpoena from the committee demanding his testimony regarding the withdrawal. House Republicans, led by Chairman Michael McCaul, accuse Blinken of stonewalling their investigation into the administration’s handling of the withdrawal. They claim Blinken’s refusal to appear is an attempt to obstruct their efforts to understand the events that led to the chaotic evacuation of U.S. personnel and Afghan allies.
However, Blinken has defended his refusal, citing his busy schedule at the United Nations General Assembly in New York this week. He has also offered alternative dates for his testimony, but the committee has rejected them, claiming they are not flexible enough.
This is not the first time the House GOP has sought to hold a Biden administration official in contempt. They have previously held Attorney General Merrick Garland and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas in contempt, but the Justice Department declined to prosecute those cases.
The House Foreign Affairs Committee’s report on the Afghanistan withdrawal paints a damning picture of the Biden administration’s planning and execution of the withdrawal. The report criticizes the administration’s reliance on the Doha agreement with the Taliban, which set a deadline for the U.S. withdrawal, and alleges that the administration failed to develop a comprehensive plan for evacuating Americans and Afghan allies.
If the House votes to hold Blinken in contempt, the case would be referred to the Department of Justice, which would then decide whether to pursue criminal charges. This will be a major test of the GOP’s ability to hold the administration accountable for its actions, and it is likely to escalate tensions between the two parties even further.
