Dem Rep. Meeks: Afghanistan Gold Star Families ‘Used as Props’ as Opposed to Doing ‘Serious’ Oversight

On Wednesday’s “CNN News Central,” House Foreign Affairs Committee Ranking Member Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY) stated that he feels sorry for some of the families of American soldiers killed in the Kabul airport bombing “because, sometimes, I believe that they’re used as props, as opposed to us focusing and doing our oversight duties, being serious.” And criticized Republicans for demanding that Tuesday’s Afghanistan hearing be in public, not in a classified session.

Co-host Kate Bolduan asked, “I want to ask you about the families of those thirteen servicemembers killed by that suicide bomber during the withdrawal, they are still looking for answers, and some of them, very clearly, are furious with President Biden and the Biden administration about it, and they don’t think that they have received the answers, enough answers or the answers that they are — answers to the questions that they have about what happened and why. I heard you say yesterday that you want them to have the answers they’re seeking, but the only way to do that is in a bipartisan way. And I ask this very seriously, how do you, will you make that happen for them on a bipartisan basis?”

Meeks responded, “I’m working very hard to do that. And that’s why I want the entire 20 years to be — to have oversight of the entire 20 years, and not just trying to pick something out because we’re into a presidential election, because that’s what was taking place. This is presidential politics that were taking place, not trying to resolve the issues for those families. The fact of the matter is, I felt even sorry for some of the families, to be quite honest with you, Kate, because, sometimes, I believe that they’re used as props, as opposed to us focusing and doing our oversight duties, being serious. The generals said a lot of this is in extra classified material. And the generals wanted to testify in a classified session, but my Republican colleagues demanded — and initially, they were threatened by a subpoena — but it was demanded to do so in public, not being serious about getting a bipartisan — if you listen to the questions that the Democrats were asking the generals, they were asking probing questions, trying to get those answers.”

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