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Dem Senate panels demand answers on Biden’s ‘failures’ in Afghanistan
By Andrew Desiderio 27 mins ago
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Three Democrat-led Senate committees are vowing to investigate the Biden administration’s bungled withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan, as officials scramble to evacuate American citizens and Afghan allies.

“We are now witnessing the horrifying results of many years of policy and intelligence failures," said Sen. Bob Menendez.© Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images “We are now witnessing the horrifying results of many years of policy and intelligence failures," said Sen. Bob Menendez.
Statements from the leaders of the Senate’s Intelligence, Foreign Relations and Armed Services committees reflect the widespread bipartisan anger over what is widely perceived as a chaotic and poorly planned exit from America’s longest war. It's concluding with a historic rush to power by a militant group that the U.S. has spent trillions of dollars and sacrificed American blood to stave off for two decades.

“I am disappointed that the Biden administration clearly did not accurately assess the implications of a rapid U.S. withdrawal,” Senate Foreign Relations Chair Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) said in a statement. “We are now witnessing the horrifying results of many years of policy and intelligence failures.”

Even as the intelligence assessments grew increasingly dire, President Joe Biden was publicly downplaying the likelihood of a swift Taliban sweep through the country, which spread to its capital city of Kabul on Sunday. The U.S. is now rushing to evacuate Americans from the country, as well as Afghans who served as interpreters and translators for U.S. troops throughout the conflict. Thousands will inevitably be left behind, lawmakers have warned, largely due to insufficient planning that caused evacuations to be delayed for months.