IV 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. CON. RES. 49 

Censuring and condemning President Joseph R. Biden. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

AUGUST 27, 2021 

Mr. VAN DREW (for himself, Mr. BANKS, Mr. POSEY, Mr. GIMENEZ, Mr. 

RICE of South Carolina, Mr. CRENSHAW, Mrs. MILLER-MEEKS, Mr. 

ROUZER, Mr. SMITH of New Jersey, Mrs. MCCLAIN, Mr. CRAWFORD, Mr. 

MANN, and Mr. MOORE of Alabama) submitted the following concurrent 

resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 

Censuring and condemning President Joseph R. Biden. 

Whereas it is the responsibility of the President, in his capacity as Commander in Chief, to ensure the national security of the United States of America and its citizens, at 

home and abroad; 

Whereas the Taliban, a fundamentalist Islamic group, controlled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001, over which period 

it established Sharia law and provided safe harbor to 

members of the al-Qaida terrorist organization, who used 

Afghanistan as a base of operations to plan the September 11, 2001, attack on the United States, which resulted in the death of over 3,000 Americans; 


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•HCON 49 IH 

Whereas the Biden administration had sufficient warning 

that the withdrawal of United States forces from Afghanistan could precipitate Taliban control of Afghanistan, 

according to— 

(1) a State Department document signed on July 

13, 2021, by 23 staff members of the United States embassy in Afghanistan, warning the Biden administration 

of the potential collapse of the Afghan capital of Kabul 

soon after the President’s withdrawal deadline; and 

(2) comments from the Chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence made on August 23, 2021, following a classified briefing, stating that 

‘‘there were any number of warnings that the Taliban 

might take over, and some that included a potential of 

a very rapid takeover.’’; 

Whereas despite sufficient warning, the Biden administration 

proceeded with a haphazard military withdrawal that directly resulted in the Taliban regaining full control of Afghanistan in only 9 days, beginning with the initial seizure of the province of Nimroz on August 6, 2021, and 

concluding with the capture of the Afghan capital of 

Kabul on August 15, 2021; 

Whereas through the course and nature of the withdrawal of 

United States military forces from Afghanistan, and the 

resulting rapid takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban, 

the Biden administration has compromised the physical 

security of tens of thousands of United States military 

personnel, United States Government operatives, United 

States civilians, Afghan allies, other international allies, 

and billions of dollars of advanced United States military 

equipment; 


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•HCON 49 IH 

Whereas, on August 26, 2021, the terrorist organization 

ISIS–K executed a series of suicide bombing attacks 

against United States military forces conducting emergency evacuation operations at the Kabul airport, which 

attacks resulted in the deaths of 13 United States service 

members, the injury of an additional 18 United States 

service members, and the deaths of 60 Afghans, including 

children; 

Whereas these events have substantively diminished the national security of the United States of America and its 

citizens, both at home and abroad; 

Whereas these events have likewise substantively diminished 

the international reputation of the United States, which 

further limits the United States ability to ensure its national security; and 

Whereas the aforementioned executive military decisions and 

resulting consequences constitute a failure to meet acceptable standards of behavior relating to the national security responsibilities of the Commander in Chief, and it 

is the responsibility of the Congress to reprimand such 

failure through censure: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 

2 concurring), That Congress does hereby condemn and cen3 sure President Joseph R. Biden for the decision to execute 

4 a haphazard military withdrawal from Afghanistan, de5 spite sufficient warning as to the probable and deleterious 

6 consequences that this decision would have on the national 

7 security of the United States and its citizens, which deci8 sion constitutes a failure to meet acceptable standards of 


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•HCON 49 IH 

1 behavior relating to the national security responsibilities 

2 of the Commander in Chief. 

Æ 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS