[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 100 (Thursday, July 7, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1257-E1258]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          AFGHANISTAN DRAWDOWN

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. ZOE LOFGREN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, July 7, 2011

  Ms. ZOE LOFGREN of California. Mr. Speaker, in October, our troops 
will have been in Afghanistan for ten years. It is the longest war in 
our country's history. I am concerned that the mission has become more 
ambitious and our exit strategy has become increasingly vague.
  This year is on pace to become the deadliest of this war. Over 1,600 
Americans have been killed and 11,000 wounded in Operation Enduring 
Freedom. A 2008 study by RAND Corp. estimates that over 26 percent of 
troops may return from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan with mental 
health issues. In terms of financial costs, California taxpayers alone 
have

[[Page E1258]]

spent over $50 billion on the war in Afghanistan. According to the 
Congressional Budget Office, ending the wars could save $1.4 trillion.
  The President's announcement that he will begin removing surge troops 
does not reflect a significant policy change in Afghanistan. Removing 
the 30,000 surge troops from Afghanistan over the next year and a half 
only means that by the end of next year, we will be exactly where we 
were before the surge in December of 2009. Roughly 100,000 American 
soldiers will remain in Afghanistan to fight a war that I have serious 
reservations about.
  I urge President Obama to reconsider his Afghanistan policy and 
commit to a meaningful drawdown of our troops.

                          ____________________