“The US State Department claimed they evacuated their local employees when in reality they abandoned hundreds of USAGM journalists and their families,” McCaul said in a press release on Tuesday. “Some of these journalists were given express assurances by the Biden Administration that they would be treated as locally employed staff - but were not.”
McCaul pointed out that only 50 USAGM staffers were evacuated, thanks to efforts by US allies and not the United States government. USAGM is the umbrella organization that oversees five US-funded media outlets, including Voice of America and Radio Free Asia.
McCaul said pleas from his office to help one of the journalists, his wife and infant child have been repeatedly ignored.
US media estimated in an August 25 report that at least 250,000 Afghans eligible for expedited US visas remained in the country at a time when American forces could only evacuate about 20,000 daily.
House Republicans have renewed their demand to impeach US President Joe Biden and his Secretary of State Antony Blinken over the bungled and chaotic US evacuation from Afghanistan. The president should voluntarily step down to preserve “a modicum of honor” and clear the way for Vice President Kamala Harris to take over, Congressman Clay Higgens said.