On the recordDecember 6, 2011
This week, representatives from several nations will meet in Bonn, Germany, to discuss the future of Afghanistan. The Bonn Conference comes exactly 10 years after the first Bonn Conference, which established the Karzai government. So right now is the perfect moment to assess and reflect on where we are and where we're going in Afghanistan. By any measure, Madam Speaker, the war we have been waging in Afghanistan for the last decade has been a failure. Our hard-earned tax dollars have been tragically wasted on a policy that has projected the worst image of America to the rest of the world. It has undermined our interests and damaged our national security--and let's not forget the human cost. More than 1,800 American families will sit at their tables over the holiday season--tables with a person missing. If we want to eliminate fallen warriors, we must bring them home while they're still alive. Hopefully, the Bonn Conference will pivot us to the next phase of our Afghanistan engagement: from military occupation to constructive partnership, from waging war in Afghanistan to helping in the spirit of peace and friendship. Ten years after we supposedly liberated them, the people of Afghanistan have enormous humanitarian needs. We need to help them rebuild their infrastructure, strengthen their democracy, and safeguard the rights of their people, all of which can be done for pennies on the dollar compared to spending military dollars.…
