AUGUST 20, 2021 - PREPARED BY: RASKY PARTNERS, INC - Rasky Partners, Inc.

WASHINGTON, DC WEEKLY UPDATE

AUGUST 20, 2021

PREPARED BY:
R A S KY PA R T N E R S , IN C

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WASHINGTON, DC WEEKLY UPDATE

       INFRASTRUCTURE AND SPENDING UPDATE
HOUSE DEMOCRATS FACE DIVISIONS OVER INFRASTRUCTURE STRATEGY
A group of centrist House Democrats have said they would withhold support for President
Biden’s $3.5 trillion budget framework lest the chamber first clear the Senate-passed bipartisan
$550 billion infrastructure bill. This further emphasizes the fissures in the Democratic caucus, as
Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) attempts to reconcile the demands of these House moderates
with those of progressives.

Pelosi’s strategy, which involves bringing the budget framework to a vote in the House the week
of August 23rd, will be increasingly difficult to pull off considering the moderates’ stance. She
can only afford to lose three members of her caucus in a budget bill vote, which passed the
Senate on a party-line vote last week and is not expected to amass any House Republican
support.

While the group of moderate Democrats had asked for a vote on the infrastructure bill next
week as well, Pelosi told the caucus during a private call on Tuesday that they would force a
vote on the budget, but not the infrastructure bill. During the call, Pelosi also thanked House
Chairman of Transportation and Infrastructure Peter DeFazio, who recently sent a letter which
urged his Democratic colleagues to unite in support of the budget resolution when the House
comes back into session next week.

However, despite these comments from Pelosi and DeFazio, the moderate Democrats have
shown no signs of relenting in their abstention from voting on the budget resolution without a
vote on the infrastructure bill itself. The White House, however, has increased pressure to keep
the process on its dual track, with Biden backing Pelosi’s efforts to pass a budget resolution in
tandem with the bipartisan infrastructure package.

      AFGHANISTAN UPDATE – STATEMENTS FROM NEW ENGLAND
      MEMBERS
SENATORS CHRIS MURPHY (CT), RICHARD BLUMENTHAL (CT), JEANNE SHAHEEN
(NH), MAGGIE HASSAN (NH), PATRICK LEAHY (VT), BERNIE SANDERS (VT), JACK REED
(RI), SHELDON WHITEHOUSE (RI), ELIZABETH WARREN (MA) AND ED MARKEY (MA)
URGE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION TO PROTECT AFGHAN WOMEN LEADERS IN WAKE
OF TALIBAN TAKEOVER IN AFGHANISTAN:

Dear Secretary Blinken and Secretary Mayorkas:

As the situation in Afghanistan rapidly deteriorates and the Taliban has taken control of Kabul,
we appreciate the urgent measures you and the Department of Defense are taking to protect
Afghan women leaders and others most at risk for retaliation by the Taliban.

We strongly urge you to create a humanitarian parole category specifically for women leaders,
activists, human rights defenders, judges, parliamentarians, journalists, and members of the
Female Tactical Platoon of the Afghan Special Security Forces and to streamline the paperwork
process to facilitate referrals to allow for fast, humane, and efficient relocation to the United

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States. We also urge you to increase processing capacity within U.S. Citizenship and
Immigration Services and to immediately appoint an interagency refugee coordinator. We
support your efforts to evacuate those who are applying for humanitarian parole and those
applying for Priority 1 or 2 pathways, including by allocating seats for them on SIV evacuation
flights. Finally, the United States should do everything possible to enable charter flights to safely
land at and depart the airport even after U.S. Embassy personnel have been evacuated, and
that clear instructions for safely accessing their aircraft are provided to those who are trying to
depart and to organizations that have referred people and their dependents.

We are gravely concerned about the safety of women leaders, activists, judges,
parliamentarians, and human rights defenders. The shocking violence and alleged atrocities
occurring have caused mass displacement which, during a global pandemic and severe
drought, has created a major humanitarian crisis. In areas captured by the Taliban, there are
reports of war crimes including summary executions, public beatings and flogging of women,
sexual violence and forced marriage, as well as clampdowns on media and other forms of
communication.

We and our staff are receiving regular reports regarding the targeting, threatening, kidnapping,
torturing, and assassinations of women for their work defending and promoting democracy,
equality, higher education, and human rights. While we welcomed the expansion of the
eligibility requirements for Special Immigrant Visas and the creation of the Priority 2 category in
the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program, we must also protect those women who might fall
through the cracks of the U.S. Government’s response.

Particularly for women who are currently targets—even hunted by Taliban fighters who are
going house-to-house with their names—the path to protection and safety under the Priority 2
designation is not accessible. While we understand there is little processing capacity at the U.S.
Embassy in Kabul, for these women to access a third country for processing is almost or
completely impossible with all borders crossings now closed or controlled by the Taliban.

We greatly appreciate your efforts to help save the lives of Afghans who have advanced U.S. and
Afghan joint interests over the last generation, standing for peace, democracy, and equality. We
are all in agreement that we owe them our unqualified support.

Sincerely,

Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn), Bob Menendez (D-N.J.),
Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.),
Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Chris Van
Hollen (D-Md.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Tom Carper (D-Del.),
Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Brian Schatz (D-
Hawaii), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Debbie Stabenow (D-
Mich.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Sheldon
Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.),
Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Bernie
Sanders (I-Vt.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Bob Casey (D-Pa.), Alex Padilla (D-
Calif.), Mazie K. Hirono (D-Hawaii), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Cory
Booker (D-N.J.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), and
Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.)

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SEN. JACK REED (RI) STATEMENT ON SITUATION IN AFGHANISTAN
“I am deeply concerned about the evolving humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, including
Afghans that are being targeted by the Taliban -- particularly women and girls; civil society
leaders; those who assisted the United States and coalition nations; and others who dared to
dream and work for progress and democracy for their country.Right now, the focus should be
on safely evacuating U.S. citizens and Afghans who aided us.

There are no easy answers to how we got here. I would argue that several factors over the last
twenty years of war in Afghanistan have shaped this outcome and must be considered as we
move forward and engage in future conflicts. These factors include a disastrous pivot to a war of
choice in Iraq, a failure to have an effective policy to deal with a duplicitous Pakistan, a failure of
mission creep from counter-terrorism; and a lack of ability to build an effective Afghan
government and security forces. These failures were compounded by the failures of the Doha
agreement by President Trump which won the United States very little, and failures of
intelligence, diplomacy and a lack of imagination as we transitioned military forces from the
country. This is not a Democratic or a Republican problem. These failures have been
manifesting over four presidential administrations of both political parties.

At the appropriate time, the Senate Armed Services Committee will hold hearings on what
went wrong in Afghanistan and lessons learned to avoid repeating those mistakes.”

REPRESENTATIVES BILL KEATING (MA), JIM MCGOVERN (MA) AND JAMES
LANGEVIN (RI) JOIN COLLEAGUES IN LETTER ASKING PRESIDENT BIDEN FOR
ANSWERS ABOUT EFFORTS TO ASSIST FLEEING AFGHANS:
Dear Mr. President:

We write with great urgency about the rapidly deteriorating situation in Afghanistan. We are
gravely concerned for the many people – U.S. citizens, Afghan allies and their families, women,
NGO employees, journalists, and so many others – stuck in Afghanistan fearing for their lives and
the future of the country. It is this Administration’s moral obligation to leverage all available
resources to help as many people as possible to safety in the United States. There is no time to
waste.

As a country, we need to do everything we can to evacuate those eligible for Special Immigrant
Visas and for the Priority-2 program. But we can’t stop there. So many are in danger because of
their association with the United States and allies, including the families of our allies, journalists,
NGO employees, and so many more.

Our offices are working diligently and around the clock to help those fleeing Afghanistan. In
doing so, we stand ready to assist the Department of State, Department of Defense, and other
relevant agencies as they work to help the many in Afghanistan who have been left behind,
including helping our constituents and those reaching out on how to work through this
bureaucracy. But our staff cannot adequately do this without a clear understanding of the
process and plan currently underway.

Therefore, we urge a timely response to the following questions:

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   How are the Department of State, Department of Defense, and other relevant U.S. agencies
   prioritizing evacuation for individuals who qualify and currently hold Special Immigrant
   Visas, their families, and others who are at risk, including journalists, NGO employees, and
   others? How do these agencies define “at risk” in terms of eligibility?
   Activists working to advance the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan, a core element of
   our mission in Afghanistan, are now being specifically targeted and their lives potentially at
   risk for their work. Does the Administration consider these women to be “at risk?” How are
   the Department of State, Department of Defense, and other relevant U.S. agencies working
   to ensure the safety of women human rights defenders and how will women human rights
   defenders be evacuated?
   How are the relevant agencies contacting the aforementioned individuals to communicate
   next steps in evacuation plans?
   What is the plan to evacuate individuals not currently prioritized?
   How does the Administration plan to grant humanitarian parole to family members of U.S
   Citizens and legal permanent residents that have pending Immigrant Visa cases? Does the
   Administration have plans to expand humanitarian parole to additional vulnerable persons?
   How are the relevant agencies ensuring security of the Kabul airport? Do we have
   assurances from the Taliban that the airport will be kept secure until all U.S. citizens, Afghan
   allies, and other individuals attempting to leave have left?
   How are the relevant agencies reaching and planning to evacuate those that are not
   currently at the Kabul airport?
   What else does the Administration need from Congress to expedite evacuations of
   Americans, Afghan allies, and other vulnerable individuals out of Afghanistan?
   What barriers prevented the Department of State, Department of Defense, and other
   relevant agencies from providing Members of Congress and their staff the appropriate
   congressional contacts and relevant requested information in a timely manner to conduct
   casework inquiries?

This is a dire, humanitarian emergency that requires our immediate attention. Congress will
continue to assist the Department of State, Department of Defense, and other relevant agencies
in their efforts to support Americans and Afghans abroad. We urge the Administration’s
foresight and close coordination with our staff in the process, as well as a swift response to
these questions so we can be helpful and responsive to the needs of those in harm’s way. If
necessary, we would welcome a classified briefing to discuss the requested information.

Sincerely,

Congresswoman Sara Jacobs (D-CA-53), Congressman Ami Bera (D-CA-07), Congressman
Donald S. Beyer Jr. (D-VA-08), Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D-OR-03), Congresswoman
Cori Bush (D-MO-01), Congressman Tony Cárdenas (D-CA-29), Congressman Sean Casten (D-
IL-06), Congressman Joaquin Castro (D-TX-20), Congressman Gerald E. Connolly (D-VA-11),
Congressman Jim Costa (D-CA-16), Congressman Jason Crow (D-CO-06), Congressman Peter
A. DeFazio (D-OR-04), Congressman Ted Deutch (D-FL-22), Congressman Dwight Evans (D-
PA-03), Congressman Brian K. Fitzpatrick (R-PA-01), Congressman Bill Foster (D-IL-11),
Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ-03), Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (D-OH-09),
Congressman William Keating (D-MA-09), Congressman Ro Khanna (D-CA-17),
Congresswoman Young Kim (R-CA-39), Congressman James Langevin (D-RI-02),

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Congressman Rick Larsen (D-WA-02), Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA-13), Congressman
Andy Levin (D-MI-09), Congressman Mike Levin (D-CA-49), Congressman Ted W. Lieu (D-CA-
33), Congressman Tom Malinowski (D-NJ-07), Congresswoman Kathy Manning (D-NC-06),
Congresswoman Doris Matsui (D-CA-06), Congressman James P. McGovern (D-MA-02),
Congresswoman Grace Meng (D-NY-06), Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA-
02), Congressman Joe Neguse (D-CO-02), Congresswoman Marie Newman (D-IL-03),
Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D-MN-05), Congressman Dean Phillips (D-MN-03),
Congressman Jamie Raskin (D-MD-08), Congressman C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD-02),
Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (D-IL-09), Congressman Bradley S. Schneider (D-IL-10),
Congressman Albio Sires (D-NJ-08), Congresswoman Dina Titus (D-NV-01), Congresswoman
Rashida Tlaib (D-MI-13), Congressman Juan Vargas (D-CA-51), Congressman Michael Waltz
(R-FL-06), Congresswoman Jennifer Wexton (D-VA-10), and Congressman John Yarmuth (D-
KY-03)

REP. SETH MOULTON (MA) STATEMENT ON THE SITUATION IN AFGHANISTAN
“To say that today is anything short of a disaster would be dishonest. Worse, it was avoidable.
The time to debate whether we stay in Afghanistan has passed, but there is still time to debate
how we manage our retreat. For months, I have been calling on the Administration to evacuate
our allies immediately—not to wait for paperwork, for shaky agreements with third countries, or
for time to make it look more ‘orderly.’

While I am proud that a strong, bipartisan majority in Congress voted to expand the Special
Immigrant Visa program in support of our Afghan friends, my worst fear has been realized: That
ultimately this effort would distract from what is truly needed, an immediate evacuation. The
fact that, at this hour, we have not even secured the civilian half of Kabul Airport is testament to
our moral and operational failure. We need to rectify this immediately. America and our allies
must drop the onerous visa requirements where a typo can condemn an ally to torture and
death, and the military must continue the evacuation for as long as it takes.

We should also not forget that the tragedy that unfolds before us today was set in motion by
Secretary Pompeo and President Trump, who negotiated in secret with the Taliban terrorists
last year in order to meet a campaign promise.

Today’s tragedy must also serve as a wakeup call to Congress, who holds ultimate,
Constitutional responsibility for sending our best and brightest to war on the nation’s behalf.
Successive leaders of both parties have failed to hold the votes for re-authorizing this conflict for
the last two decades since we invaded to find Osama bin Laden. For that, all of us in Congress
should be ashamed.

Finally, to our Afghanistan veterans and their families, I am too honest to stand here today and
try to convince you that your sacrifice was worth it. Some will find solace in the millions of
Afghans, especially women and girls, to whom we gave two decades of a taste of freedom—
more hope, liberty, and opportunity than they would have ever had without the tireless work
and irreparable sacrifices of our troops. We accomplished our initial mission: Osama bin Laden
is dead and the threat of terrorist attacks against Americans originating from Afghanistan is
diminished. We also provided the security needed to accomplish a peace process that,
unfortunately, was never realized.

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Others will forever ask that haunting question I heard too often from my own Marines in Iraq:
‘Why are we here?’ The best answer I could ever come up with was simply, ‘So nobody has to be
here in our place,’ and while that was never an adequate answer, it is true. And I remain proud
to be from a nation whose brave young men and women stand on the ramparts of freedom
around the globe, as they do at Kabul Airport tonight.”

REP. AYANNA PRESSLEY (MA) STATEMENT ON AFGHANISTAN

“The tragic events unfolding in Afghanistan are further proof that the U.S. policy of forever wars—
endless occupation and intervention—will not bring lasting peace to the region. We cannot
respond to the escalating situation with violence or further military intervention and we must
continue to bring our troops home.

The U.S. response must offer swift refuge to Afghans fleeing violence, center diplomacy, and
support the most vulnerable through humanitarian assistance.”

REP. CHELLIE PINGREE (ME) STATEMENT ON AFGHANISTAN

“President Biden was right to finally end this forever war. Long before I was elected, I opposed
the wars started by President Bush after 9/11 and I have fought to end them throughout my
time in Congress. Our servicemembers and their families have made enormous sacrifices over
the course of the last two decades; we must honor their dedication by ensuring another
generation does not have to fight the same battle. Now we must do everything possible to get
those who were loyal to our troops and aided us in Afghanistan to safety.”

       WHAT TO EXPECT NEXT WEEK
The House Intelligence Committee will receive a classified briefing on Afghanistan on Monday
from representatives of several intelligence agencies.

The House Rules Committee is scheduled to meet Monday to consider several pieces of
legislation, including the vehicles carrying the Senate-passed bipartisan infrastructure bill (H.R.
3684), the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act (H.R. 4), and the budget resolution (S.
Con. Res. 14) setting up a reconciliation process that would allow Democrats to pass a $3.5
trillion spending and tax package without Republican support.