House approves $33.5 billion to help pay for 30,000 extra troops.
Rep. Dan Maffei speaks in January at Hancock Airport after returning from a trip to Afghanistan. On Tuesday he voted against funding the 30,000 extra troops ordered to Afghanistan by President Obama. The House approved the bill 308-114, with almost all of the opposition coming from Democrats. Only 12 Republicans opposed the measure to pay for the additional 30,000 troops to Afghanistan.
It was the first time Maffei voted to withhold funding for troops in Afghanistan, although he has consistently voiced impatience with American military involvement. He visited Afghanistan in late December and said he saw no reason for the troop surge.
“Last year, the Obama administration indicated that the supplemental war funding bill, which I voted for, would be sufficient in order for our military to carry out its mission,” Maffei said in a statement Tuesday night.
"While I am on record that we need to end our involvement in Afghanistan , the fact of the matter is that the Defense Department now has plenty of resources to fully fund our troops so they can carry out the mission they were asked to by the president," he said.
Pentagon leaders had warned they could run out of money for the troops as early as Aug. 7 without the spending bill, which totaled $59 billion because of other items attached to it. The bill includes more than $13 billion for Vietnam veterans exposed to Agent Orange.
Maffei said he thought the money could be better used back home.
"As I said after visiting Afghanistan in late December – the mission to rid the country of the Taliban and Al Qaeda is largely complete," Maffei said. "Now we are asking our troops to nation build, and we cannot afford to be doing that at this time. During a time when communities are laying off police officers and teachers due to the recession, why are we providing funds to train police officers and teachers in Afghanistan ? It just doesn’t make sense. We've asked enough of our troops already in Afghanistan and it's past time to bring them home."
Central New York's other congressmen, U.S. Reps. Michael Arcuri, D-Utica, and Bill Owens, D-Plattsburgh, voted for the measure.
Contact Post-Standard Washington correspondent Mark Weiner at mweiner@syracuse.com or 571-970-3751.