This month marked the second anniversary of the end of America’s longest war. Despite the two years since our withdrawal and the more than two decades since our presence started, we run the risk of not learning two key lessons from our experience in Afghanistan: the importance of restoring the proper voice of Congress on matters of national security and making sure America upholds its commitments to its allies.
There has been no shortage of focus about the roots and blames surrounding the chaotic U.S. withdrawal on display two years ago. Yet, mostly absent from the string of reports, hearings and analyses has been a meaningful discussion about the role of Congress, which has the constitutional responsibility to oversee U.S. foreign policy established by the executive branch.
Under presidents of both parties during our two decades in Afghanistan, Congress abdicated much of its constitutional role. Many of the problems on display during the withdrawal could have been — at least partially — mitigated had Congress played a more active role, including in prioritizing more Special Immigrant Visas for our Afghan allies.
However, the absence of meaningful congressional oversight and accountability was most acute in the larger sense: the legislative branch’s role in watching the initial engagement evolve into a “forever war” with objectives far from the originally authorized intention.
The lessons from Afghanistan are just one example in what has been a long-term trend on matters of war and peace. Although the president is the nation’s commander in chief, the power to declare war and appropriate funds for military purposes was reserved for Congress in the Constitution. But presidents of both parties have seized extraordinary unilateral authority to wage war, declare emergencies and sell dangerous weapons. With respect to national security matters, Congress has, at best, reduced itself to the role of junior partner.
Fortunately, there is a rare bipartisan consensus that the people’s representatives must have more say on national security issues. Reps. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) and Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) recently reintroduced the National Security Reforms and Accountability Act (NSRAA), which, like the Senate’s bipartisan National Security Powers Act, would advance structural reforms so that presidents wishing to initiate military action, assume powers by declaring a national emergency or sell arms abroad would be able to exercise these powers without affirmative congressional approval only for a limited period.
These reforms would help restore balance between the executive branch and the legislative branch on national security. Meanwhile, by passing the Afghanistan Adjustment Act (AAA), Congress would demonstrate that it can still exercise its constitutional responsibility on national security — and its commitments to our allies. Since the chaotic withdrawal two years ago, lawmakers have failed to pass legislation that would create pathways to permanent residency for the thousands of Afghans evacuated to the U.S., including translators who worked for the U.S. military who are under threat of reprisal from the Taliban.
The AAA has remarkable bipartisan support, as its list of Senate co-sponsors indicates, and the support of military leaders, including more than two dozen generals and admirals who signed a letter in support of the legislation on both moral and strategic grounds.
We owe a debt of gratitude to our Afghan allies who served alongside American soldiers fighting the Taliban. When I served in Iraq, we worked closely with our Iraqi allies to provide food, water and security assistance to the local populace. The support we provided helped to get Iraq back on its feet.
America’s strength as a global power has always been built in large part on a strong network of allies. If we are to be prepared for any future conflicts, current and potential future allies will certainly look at how we treat our Afghan allies today. This is about keeping our promises to those who aided America, but it is also about supporting and enabling American troops in the years ahead. This is exactly the type of issue where Congress should be leading the way.
The full understanding of what went wrong in Afghanistan will take years, perhaps decades, to grapple with. But looking ahead at America’s potential involvement in future conflicts, its national security decisionmaking and its broader relationship with the world, Congress needs to have a voice and be willing to exercise its constitutional duties.
The NSRAA and the AAA are both meaningful legislation worth our support that will show we have learned the right lessons from Afghanistan. Congress should act now.
Naveed Shah is a U.S. Army veteran who served in Iraq and currently works for the progressive veterans organization Common Defense.