WASHINGTON—House Oversight and Accountability Committee Chairman James Comer (R, Kentucky) today called on senior Biden administration officials to cooperate fully with the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR). The Oversight Board obtained testimony from Inspector General John Sopko that the State Department, the Pentagon, the Treasury Department, and the United States Agency for International Development are obstructing the SIGAR investigation.
“The Commission on Oversight is investigating the withdrawal of U.S. troops and the evacuation of U.S. citizens and Afghan allies from Afghanistan. One of the key partners in the Council’s evaluation is the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), which is supported by the State Department, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Department of Defense, and the U.S. Treasury in its ongoing evaluation. This lack of cooperation is unacceptable, and the administration has circumvented SIGAR’s vital surveillance missions, and the US public’s response to its catastrophic failure in Afghanistan. I’m not going to ignore accountability to wrote Chairman Comer.
At an oversight committee hearing on April 19, 2023, SIGAR head Inspector General John Sopko said: testified US Taxpayers’ Money Falls In Taliban Hands, Biden Administration Hinder SIGAR congressional mandated report. The Biden administration’s claim that SIGAR no longer has oversight jurisdiction over humanitarian and development aid is a fundamental departure from the administration’s own past practice. The 2008 National Defense Authorization Act makes clear that SIGAR will report on US taxpayer aid to Afghanistan on a quarterly basis.
“The government’s refusal to cooperate with SIGAR has hampered SIGAR’s ability to provide independent, robust and meaningful oversight. Congress has empowered SIGAR to carry out this mission of providing government-wide oversight, and only Congress determines the scope of SIGAR’s jurisdiction and mandate. The Commission, therefore, has the authority to respond to any previous, current, or future request for information, audits, assessments, oversight, interviews, or other tools that SIGAR deems necessary to accomplish its mission. , urges the authorities to cooperate fully with SIGAR.” Chairman Comer continued.
Read the letter to Secretary Anthony Blinken, Secretary Lloyd Austin, Secretary Janet Yellen and Secretary Samantha Power here.
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