Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., preemptively ripped an increase in U.S. troops based in Afghanistan, which he expects President Trump to announce from Fort Myers, Va., Monday evening.
“The mission in Afghanistan has lost its purpose and I think it is a terrible idea to send any more troops into that war,” Paul said in a statement Monday.
Trump will share the new U.S. strategy for South Asia and Afghanistan during a nationally televised speech later Monday.
American troops have been present in Afghanistan, in various amounts, for 16 years. If Trump committed to sending more troops overseas, it would contradict campaign promises to pull the U.S. from this entanglement.
Paul, a libertarian who has advocated for returning war powers to Congress, plans to an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act that would repeal the 2001 and 2002 Authorizations for Use of Military Force.
