Senator Corker Succeeds in Getting Afghanistan/Pakistan Benchmarks Added to War Funding Bill

Corker, Lieberman, Graham Amendment Requiring Progress Reports on Afghanistan/Pakistan Included in Supplemental Appropriations Bill

May 21, 2009 -- WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), along with Senators Joe Lieberman (ID-Conn.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), successfully added language to the supplemental appropriations bill (H.R. 2346) requiring the Obama administration to submit an initial report to Congress on the benchmarks for U.S. policy in Afghanistan and Pakistan and regular progress reports thereafter towards achieving those objectives. Corker voted for the supplemental which passed the Senate by a vote of 86-3.

“This is a bipartisan effort calling for the President to provide Congress with a clear set of objectives for Afghanistan and Pakistan and benchmarks to quantify progress towards achieving those objectives. This is not tying anyone’s hands, and there are no timetables dictating when certain things must occur, but we need a clearly articulated policy equal to the tremendous sacrifice that our men and women in uniform are putting forth daily on our behalf. I thank Senator Inouye and Senator Cochran, chairman and vice chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, for recognizing this need and making the language part of their bill,” Corker said.

The Corker, Lieberman, Graham provision added to the bill states:

(1) Within 60 days of enactment, the President must submit to Congress a clear statement of his objectives for Afghanistan and Pakistan and the benchmarks that will be used to quantify progress toward achieving those objectives.

(2) By 30 March 2010 and every 120 days after that time, the President must submit a report to Congress assessing progress in Afghanistan and Pakistan based on the benchmarks identified in the first report, justify any changes to benchmarks, and identify any additional resources or authorities that may be needed to better achieve the objectives.

Source: Senator Bob Corker