Congresswoman Louise Slaughter, Ranking Member of the House Rules Committee, today released the following statement on the 10 year anniversary of the beginning of US military operations in Afghanistan.
"Let's not forget why we entered Afghanistan 10 years ago: to find Osama bin Laden and prevent Al-Qaeda from using the country as a base to attack the United States. Bin Laden is gone, Al-Qaeda has been scattered around the globe, and yet we continue to risk the lives of brave Americans and squander billions of dollars after a decade of interminable conflict. We have spent $444 billion on the war in Afghanistan -- all on the nation's credit card. At least $31 billion has vanished into thin air due to contracting waste, fraud, and abuse during wars over the past 10 years. Ask yourself: how many roads, bridges, and schools could we build here with that money?
"Yet we foolishly continue the longest war in American history. It has to stop. Instead of wasting taxpayer dollars building a nation for Afghanistan, we should be using American taxpayer dollars to put Americans back to work."