House Committee Subpoenas State Dept. for Afghanistan Cable

Facts

• US Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, subpoenaed the US Dept. of State on Tuesday to turn over a cable written by US diplomats serving in Afghanistan before the US withdrawal.¹
• McCaul said the subpoena became necessary after "multiple good faith attempts" were made to have the State turn over the cable, and Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s response to it, were rebuffed.²
• The July 2021 cable was disseminated to Blinken via a special "dissent channel," which was a mechanism created in 1971 for State employees to convey alternative or opposing views on foreign policy to their superiors.³
• The cable, which was reportedly written by 23 US officials, could shed light on warnings that the US wasn’t prepared for its August 2021 Afghanistan withdrawal, which resulted in a near-immediate takeover of the country by the Taliban.⁴
• McCaul previously offered to review the cable in a secure location or have the names of its signers redacted, but the State Dept. still refused to turn it over.⁵
• As far back as August 2021, the Foreign Affairs committee — led then by chairman Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) – tried to obtain the cable but failed. The committee renewed its request this January when Republicans took control, and again this month.³

Sources: ¹CNN, ²Associated Press, ³CBS, ⁴USA Today, and ⁵NBC.

Narratives

• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Washington Post. It would be unprecedented for the State Dept. to turn over anything it feels is too sensitive for Congress’ eyes, and the House has few tools to force compliance with this request. Allowing Congress access to the "dissent line" would have a chilling effect on future correspondence between diplomats and their bosses. Blinken has made many other documents available and is more than willing to brief Congress on the cable’s contents, but instead, the House has opted to issue a subpoena it can’t enforce.
• Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by New York Post. There must be Congressional oversight of the State Dept., especially when it bungles something as badly as it did the Afghanistan withdrawal. Thirteen US service members died because of government incompetence, and the American people deserve transparency. Beyond the "dissent cable" — which can reasonably be reviewed as a redacted version or in a secure location — the State Dept. should turn over everything the committee has requested so it can get the answers it needs.