“I have a lot of Afghanistan veterans on this committee, and in fairness to them, I think they should be able to see the dissent cable as well — not just me and the ranking member,” he said. “If we can figure out the final step, then I think we’ve resolved a lawsuit in the courts and [achieved] a good result for our veterans.”
The July 2021 document from diplomats in Afghanistan warned of Kabul’s possible rapid fall, which proved accurate.
Reaching a final deal with McCaul would avert the threat of Secretary of State Antony Blinken being held in contempt of Congress, which the Texas Republican had threatened to vote on in his committee on May 24. Blinken would become the first Secretary of State ever held in contempt.
In its response, the State Department asserted that it believed it had “met the committee’s information needs” through a written summary and classified briefing on the cable, but that it wanted to “resolve this matter expeditiously and remains committed to the accommodation process.”
McCaul subpoenaed the dissent cable — and Blinken’s response to it — in late March after making several document requests earlier in Congress.
Meeks, the top Democrat on the Foreign Affairs Committee, told reporters that he spoke with McCaul after the offer, but that the two had not yet scheduled their visit to view the document.
“Hopefully, this brings everything else to an end,” Meeks said of the conflict with the State Department. “What I will say is that we will go together when that happens.”
