By Donna Westfall – January 28, 2022

As I recall, not only was I concerned about American’s left in Afghanistan, but also all the tens of millions of dollars in military armaments/equipment and hardware/supplies left there. I posed the question as to why Biden should not be brought up on treason charges. Here’s our Senator’s response:

Dear Mrs. Westfall:

Thank you for writing to me regarding Afghan refugees.  I appreciate the time you took to write, and I welcome the opportunity to respond.

I am heartbroken by the situation in Afghanistan, where Americans and Afghans who have worked with our personnel over the past twenty years are under threat from the Taliban.  Our government must make every effort to repatriate American citizens, visa holders, and those who worked with the United States to build a civil society in Afghanistan.

I am particularly concerned for those who have supported the rights of women and girls, all of whom face significant threats under a renewed Taliban government.  For that reason, on August 16, 2021, I joined several of my Senate colleagues in sending a bipartisan letter urging the Biden Administration to protect and support Afghan women leaders facing danger following the Taliban’s violent sweep across Afghanistan and seizure of Kabul.  You can read the full letter here: https://sen.gov/051N.  Further, I joined Senator Murphy in a letter asking the Department of Homeland Security and State to explore the use of parole status to facilitate the entry of Afghans who qualify for family-based or employment visas. 

As a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which oversees immigration policy, it is a priority for me to ensure our country does all it can to protect Afghan refugees.  To that end, I strongly support the Afghan Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs) program for Afghan nationals who served as translators, interpreters, or were otherwise employed by the U.S. government or the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan.  

Please know that I will continue to work with my Senate colleagues to protect Afghan refugees, and that I have made it a top priority to assist those seeking to evacuate from Afghanistan.  If you or anyone you know is seeking evacuation assistance from Kabul, please contact my San Francisco office by phone at 415-393-0707 or by email at AfghanistanCasework@feinstein.senate.gov.  I will keep your thoughts in mind as I continue to monitor the troubling situation in Afghanistan.

Once again, thank you for writing.  Should you have any other questions or comments, please call my Washington, D.C., office at (202) 224-3841 or visit my website at feinstein.senate.gov.  You can also follow me online at YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter. 

Best regards.
Sincerely yours,

  Dianne Feinstein
         United States Senator