A spokesperson for Oklahoma Representative Markwayne Mullin has said he is "completely safe" following reports that he left the country for Afghanistan in an attempt to rescue five American citizens left behind as U.S. troops withdrew from Kabul.
Mullin is reported to have asked the U.S. ambassador to Tajikistan for help transporting a large amount of cash into the country, as part of his attempts to enter neighboring Afghanistan and fly out a woman and her four children as the Taliban takes control again.
According to The Washington Post, citing two unnamed U.S. officials, Mullin told the embassy he was going to fly from Tbilisi, Georgia, into Tajikistan's capital of Dushanbe on Monday, just as the final evacuations were taking off from Kabul airport.
After the embassy declined his requests to bypass rules on the amount of money people can bring into Tajikistan, Mullin allegedly threatened both the U.S. ambassador John Mark Pommersheim and embassy staff, demanding to know the name of the officials he was speaking to.
The Post reported that as of Tuesday night, the officials were unsure where Mullin was.
In a statement later that night, Meredith Blanford, communications director for Mullin, confirmed that the congressman is safe but did not say whether he is out of the country or not.
"Congressman Mullin has been and is currently completely safe," Blanford tweeted.
"He and the Office of Oklahoma's Second District will continue to do anything in our power to bring home all Americans from the war zone that President Biden abandoned. The safety and security of the American people will always be his top priority."
Mullin is reported to have traveled to Greece last week and asked the Department of Defense for permission to visit Kabul, a request the Pentagon denied.
The incident occurred after fellow congressmen Seth Moulton and Peter Meijer were heavily criticized for flying out to Kabul to witness the evacuations first-hand, with one senior administrator telling The Post the visit was "as moronic as it is selfish."
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi later issued a statement requesting that representatives do not visit Afghanistan while the evacuation operation was taking place.
"Ensuring the safe and timely evacuation of individuals at risk requires the full focus and attention of the U.S. military and diplomatic teams on the ground in Afghanistan," Pelosi said.
"Members traveling to Afghanistan and the surrounding countries would unnecessarily divert needed resources from the priority mission of safely and expeditiously evacuating America and Afghans at risk from Afghanistan."
In a statement on Monday, Mullin condemned President Joe Biden's decision to keep his agreement with the Taliban and withdraw all troops from Afghanistan by August 31 while U.S. citizens remain in the country
"This is a sad day for our country," Mullin said. "Americans have been stranded in Afghanistan by the Biden Administration and are now left to defend themselves from terrorists overrunning the country.
"One motto of our military is 'leave no man behind.' But today, that's exactly what President Biden did. American exit did not have to be this way and there must be accountability for this complete and utter failure. The service and sacrifice of our service members and their families was not made in vain, and it will never be forgotten."
Mullin has been contacted for further comment.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Ewan Palmer is a Newsweek News Reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on US politics, domestic policy ... Read more
