[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 21 (Wednesday, February 8, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E163-E164]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 U.S. COMBAT OPERATIONS IN AFGHANISTAN

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOHN GARAMENDI

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, February 8, 2012

  Mr. GARAMENDI. Mr. Speaker, I commend President Obama's 
administration for the steps it is taking to bring the longest war in 
our nation's history to a close. Last week, Defense Secretary Panetta 
expressed the hope that ``by mid- to the latter part of 2013 we'll be 
able to make a transition from a combat role to a training, advice and 
assist role.'' I urge the administration to fulfill this aspiration and 
bring our troops home to their families. They have sacrificed enough.
  Afghanistan began as a war of necessity. After the horrific September 
11th attacks, we sent troops to eliminate Al Qaeda, killing their 
leaders and destroying their training camps to prevent a future 
terrorist attack. Our troops carried out this mission with 
extraordinary courage and dedication. Osama Bin Laden was driven out of 
Afghanistan and he is now dead. Furthermore, our intelligence community 
affirms that Al Qaeda is virtually extinguished from Afghanistan, yet 
the war continues. End this war now and focus like a laser on 
terrorists whereever they may be.
  Our troops in Afghanistan are no longer fighting terrorists who pose 
a threat to the United States. They are now fighting domestic Afghan 
factions and defending a corrupt and inept Afghan government. Our 
servicemembers are dying in another country's civil war. This has 
become a war of choice.
  I recently met with Lt. Col. Danny Davis who described to me what 
that civil war looks like on the ground. He has served two combat 
deployments in Afghanistan, and has traveled throughout the country 
talking with US troops stationed all over. A recent evaluation of Col. 
Davis reads: ``His maturity, tenacity and judgment can be counted on in 
even the hardest of situations, and his devotion to mission 
accomplishment is unmatched by his peers.'' This is how Col. Davis 
describes what he has observed:

       What I saw bore no resemblance to rosy official statements 
     by U.S. military leaders about conditions on the ground. 
     Entering this deployment, I was sincerely hoping to learn 
     that the claims were true: that conditions in Afghanistan 
     were improving . . .
       Instead, I witnessed the absence of success on virtually 
     every level.
       I saw the incredible difficulties any military force would 
     have to pacify even a single area of any of those provinces; 
     I heard many stories of how insurgents controlled virtually 
     every piece of land beyond eyeshot of a U.S. or International 
     Security Assistance Force (ISAF) base. I saw little to no 
     evidence the local governments were able to provide for the 
     basic needs of the people. Some of the Afghan civilians I 
     talked with said the people didn't want to be connected to a 
     predatory or incapable local government. From time to time, I 
     observed Afghan Security forces collude with the insurgency. 
     . .

  Col. Davis's candid testimony reinforced my conviction that there is 
no military solution to the conflict in Afghanistan, only the prospect 
of continued shedding of American blood in a war that is not ours to 
fight. Only through a negotiated political settlement amongst the 
Afghan factions, not through an open-ended U.S. military presence, 
could Afghanistan become a stable, developing country.
  America faces new threats now. The more than a trillion dollars spent 
on two wars over the course of a decade undermines our financial 
stability and takes away from much needed funds for American jobs and 
investments at home. The Obama administration has shown courageous 
leadership in eliminating Osama Bin Laden and other top Al Qaeda 
leaders. They have also shown leadership in bringing the war in Iraq to 
an end and in planning to ensure that the U.S. military commitment in 
Afghanistan is not an open-ended one. As President Obama clearly stated 
in his speech on the drawdown plan last year, we need to focus on 
nation-building at home. I agree, and I strongly support ending U.S. 
combat operations in Afghanistan and bringing our troops

[[Page E164]]

home by mid-2013, if not sooner. It is the people in this body, the 
United States Congress, that can choose when this war ends.

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