Strategy to Oppose Financial or Material Support By Foreign Countries to the Taliban

Floor Speech

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Mr. BURCHETT. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman, and I appreciate the kind words of the gentleman across the aisle and his support for this important piece of legislation.

Mr. Speaker, when the United States withdrew from Afghanistan in 2021, over $7 billion worth of military equipment was left behind for the Taliban. This seems to be a usual occurrence for this country, no matter who is in power.

I was the mayor of Knox County. With anywhere from $10 million to $15 million, we can build a high school in Tennessee. I can't imagine what $7 billion would do across the country. Anyway, all that is outrageous.

Every cent our government spends comes from the American people, and right now, we are borrowing a whole heck of a lot of it. We are $35 trillion in debt. The fact that their money has gone to terrorists, to me, is just a complete disgrace, Mr. Speaker. This bill would help prevent any more money from ending up in the hands of the Taliban.

The bill does three things.

First, it states the policy of the United States is to oppose financial or material support to the dadgum Taliban. It also calls for a report on any foreign countries that have given financial or material support to the Taliban and calls for the Secretary of State to develop a strategy to discourage foreign countries from providing support.

This came from a conversation I had in a committee. I want to give John Stout in my office some incredible kudos for helping me craft this bill. We asked a member, I believe it was, of the State Department, this money that we give to these organizations, these countries, is there any way to keep it from getting into the hands of terrorists? In fact, he said: No. In this case, there was not.

Second, this bill calls for a report on cash assistance programs in Afghanistan and puts safeguards in place to prevent the Taliban from accessing it, keeping them from getting to the money.

Third, it requires a report on the Afghan Fund and the Afghanistan central bank and what controls are in place to make sure these funds are not diverted or misused.

Thirteen brave servicemembers, including a constituent of mine, Staff Sergeant Ryan Knauss, lost their lives in the Afghanistan withdrawal. He was technically the last American to lose his life in Afghanistan. The road I live on, the State highway, has been named in his honor. I see it every day when I drive down it, and I think about that.

I have held his parents both when they have cried and I have cried, and it is just very emotional for me. These folks lost their lives in the Afghanistan withdrawal, and we need to make sure our tax dollars don't go toward terrorists who killed Americans.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to vote for this bill, which keeps our government accountable and prevents the Taliban from getting its hands on any more of Americans' hard-earned money. I thank my friends across the aisle as well for their support.

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