On the recordMay 25, 2010
I rise to offer an amendment on behalf of myself, Senator Boxer, Senator Durbin, and Senator Merkley, that would require the President to provide a flexible timetable for the responsible drawdown of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. The amendment is based on legislation I have introduced in the Senate, as I mentioned, with Senator Boxer, and also that Representative McGovern and Representative Jones have introduced in the House. Our amendment would require the President to be clear about his timeframe in Afghanistan. The President has already indicated that his surge strategy in Afghanistan is time limited and he will begin redeploying troops in July 2011. All we are asking is that the President provide further details about how long he intends to leave our troops in Afghanistan, and about what variables could lead him to change his mind about this timetable. Before I go on, I want to explain what my amendment does not do. It does not set a specific date for the withdrawal of U.S. troops. It does not require the President to actually redeploy troops. And it does not place any restrictions on funding. Rather, it simply requires the President to provide a timeline for the redeployment of U.S. troops. That timeline is not binding. In fact, the amendment directs the President to identify, as I said, what variables, if any, would warrant the alteration of that timeline.
