Angus King: There Are about 170 Dual Citizens Who 'Decided They Want to Stay in Afghanistan Because That's Where Their Families Are'

On Tuesday’s broadcast of MSNBC’s “Andrea Mitchell Reports,” Sen. Angus King (I-ME) said there are “170 or so dual citizens who thusfar, have decided they want to stay in Afghanistan because that’s where their families are” and criticized “all of the chest-beating about we’re leaving people behind” in Afghanistan.

King said, “[O]ne of the things we learned, which was a surprise to me, a pleasant surprise, is that, as of right now, there are three Americans who want to get out of Afghanistan who have not yet left, but we have good prospects of getting them out. We’ve gotten almost a thousand American citizens and legal permanent residents out of Afghanistan since August 31. Remember, all of the chest-beating about we’re leaving people behind and we’re abandoning people, the truth is, the evacuation of those people has continued. There are another 170 or so dual citizens who thusfar, have decided they want to stay in Afghanistan because that’s where their families are and that’s — they’ve made that decision. But the evacuation of American citizens and Afghans who assisted us has continued since August 31 and a very large number have gotten out.”

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