Senate

Senators want Syria training program shut down

by Jordain Carney - 10/02/15 11:28 AM ET

A bipartisan group of senators is pushing for the Obama administration to end its Syria train-and-equip program, underscoring growing skepticism of the effort in Congress.

Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Tom Udall (D-N.M.) and Mike Lee (R-Utah) sent a letter to Department of Defense Secretary Ashton Carter, Secretary of State John Kerry and CIA Director John Brennan, saying that the administration needs to “look for alternative ways forward.”

{mosads}”The Syria Train and Equip Program goes beyond simply being an inefficient use of taxpayer dollars. As many of us initially warned, it is now aiding the very forces we aim to defeat,” the senators wrote in the letter, which was sent earlier this week but released on Friday.

The letter comes as the Pentagon announced on Tuesday that it had temporarily stopped receiving new recruits at training sites, but pushed back against suggestions that the program had been suspended. The announcement followed U.S.-backed Syrian rebels turning over their equipment to the Al Nusra Front, al Qaeda’s affiliate in Syria.

The senators added that they are “deeply concerned” and the latest incident underscored worries “about this program endangering Americans and further escalating the conflict.”

“The situation in Syria is absolutely tragic, and we must ensure that any U.S. efforts do not cause additional harm,” they added.

The letter isn’t the first time lawmakers have voiced their growing frustration about the program. Gen. Lloyd Austin, the commander of U.S. Central Command, was grilled by lawmakers during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing last month.

In the wake of that hearing, Sens. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) and Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) asked for Carter to brief them on the administration’s review of the train-and-equip program including how it would be changed.

Murphy has also called on the administration to suspend the program, which the Pentagon initially estimated could train 5,4000 by the end of the year.

Tags Chris Murphy Claire McCaskill Deb Fischer Joe Manchin John Kerry Mike Lee Tom Udall