Representative Brian Mast (R., Fla.) sent a inquiry to the Biden administration on Wednesday, asking when Vice President Kamala Harris last received intelligence briefings about the U.S. military overseas after she claimed during last week’s presidential debate that there were no active-duty soldiers in combat zones.
“As of today, there is not one member of the United States military who is on active duty in a combat zone, in any war zone around the world, the first time this century,” Harris falsely claimed on September 10.
The Democratic presidential nominee faced backlash for her remarks on military policy. Though she wasn’t fact-checked by ABC News moderators David Muir or Linsey Davis on debate night, multiple media outlets corrected the record.
Over 2,500 U.S. soldiers and 900 U.S. military personnel are based in Iraq and Syria, respectively, to prevent the return of ISIS in the region, ABC reported in fact-checking its own moderators. However, the American manpower in Iraq is expected to decrease in the coming years.
On Friday, Politico was one of many news outlets to report that the U.S. will announce a plan next week to reduce its troop presence in Iraq. The move is part of deal with Iraqi officials, who have publicly said they expect all 2,500 U.S. troops to leave their country by the end of 2026. Negotiations over the deal are in their final stages, according to two anonymous administration officials.
Meanwhile, terrorist groups associated with Iran have repeatedly attacked American troops in the Middle East amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. In January, for example, an Iranian-backed militia killed three U.S. soldiers and wounded 34 others in a drone attack at a military base near the Syrian border. Also, the U.S. Navy in the Red Sea routinely engages with Houthi fighters from Yemen.
Not to mention that 13 service members died during the U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021 — a disastrous exit that the Biden administration is still reeling from three years later.
The vice president’s inaccurate statement led Mast to wonder whether Harris receives the same intelligence briefings and troop updates as President Joe Biden. The congressman also asked what the White House considers a “combat zone” or “war zone.”
“There is not a shadow of a doubt that American active-duty military personnel have served in combat and war zones during the Biden-Harris administration,” Mast, who is a veteran himself, wrote in a letter. “This is not something to be shirked, ignored, forgotten, or swept under the rug for political gain. American service members put themselves in harm’s way every day and any claim otherwise is a slap in the face to American soldiers and American military families.”
The congressman submitted the letter to national-intelligence director Avril Haines, national-security adviser Jake Sullivan, White House chief of staff Jeff Zients, and vice-presidential national-security adviser Philip Gordon.
Mast’s office did not immediately respond to National Review’s request for comment on whether the Biden-administration officials had answered Wednesday’s inquiry.
“Since Ms. Harris is second in the line of presidential succession,” Mast continued, “it is vital for Congress to know whether her comments were intentional misinformation, a brain freeze under pressure, or stem from being left out of pertinent intelligence briefings by the White House.”