Af-Gone-Istan, Bipartisan Stupidity Edition

In a way, I've never seen the pundit class, Democrats, and Republicans so universally in agreement on anything in the last five years but there you are. They all agree that House Reps. Seth Moulton, a Democrat, and Republican Rep. Peter Meijer, are two of the most inanely moronic people on the planet right now.

Two members of Congress made an unauthorized whirlwind trip to Kabul early Tuesday, leaving less than 24 hours later on a flight used for evacuating U.S. citizens, allies and vulnerable Afghans.

The visit by Reps. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) and Peter Meijer (R-Mich.) — which was not approved as part of the normal process for congressional fact-finding trips — served as a distraction for military and civilian staffers attempting to carry out frenzied rescue efforts, according to two people familiar with the trip who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk about the matter.

It is not clear how the lawmakers, both of whom served in Iraq before being elected to Congress, first entered Afghanistan. Moulton’s office did not confirm the trip until the plane evacuating the members of Congress left Afghanistan’s airspace. Meijer’s office did not respond to an email seeking comment.

The cloak-and-dagger trip infuriated some officials at the Pentagon and the State Department, where diplomats, military officers and civil servants are working around-the-clock shifts in Washington and at the Kabul airport to evacuate thousands of people from the country every day.

“It’s as moronic as it is selfish,” said a senior administration official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to provide a frank assessment of their trip. “They’re taking seats away from Americans and at-risk Afghans — while putting our diplomats and service members at greater risk — so they can have a moment in front of the cameras.”

In a joint statement from Moulton and Meijer emailed to The Washington Post by Moulton spokesman Tim Biba, the two pushed back on the notion that their trip caused a distraction.

“We have been on the other side of this argument while we were serving and it just isn’t accurate,” Moulton and Meijer said. “Trust us: the professionals on the ground are focused on the mission. Many thanked us for coming.”

 

If that's the best defense these two dirt clods have, then I actually wouldn't feel bad at all if both Nancy Pelosi and Kevin McCarthy kick these clowns off all their committees and leave them grounded for the rest of the 117th Congress where they can share detention with Marjorie Taylor Greene.

There's dumb, performative stunts, and then there's this idiocy. Moulton and Meijer should both be ashamed of themselves, and I hope voters act accordingly.