GOP threatens Blinken contempt charge over Afghanistan docs

By FARNOUSH AMIRI
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The State Department says it’s “unfortunate” the House Foreign Affairs Committee’s chairman has threatened to hold Secretary of State Antony Blinken in contempt of Congress if the department doesn’t turn over classified cables related to the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. Texas Republican Rep. Michael McCaul pledged Friday to escalate the battle with the State Department over a dissent cable written by diplomats at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul before the 2021 withdrawal. The deadline for the State Department to respond is Thursday. A department spokesperson says the committee has received a classified briefing on the cable and a written summary. The department says providing the cable would threaten the integrity of the classified reporting process.