Niger: The ghost of Benghazi and the danger of mission creep

Four brave American service members were killed in an ambush near the Niger-Mali border last month. The American people deserve to understand how this tragedy occurred, and the U.S. Government must ensure that we do not repeat the same mistakes going forward. Democrats should not, however, follow the example of those in Congress who cynically exploited the September 2012 terrorist attacks in Benghazi, Libya.

We should not embark on a highly politicized investigation that drags out just long enough to win a few elections. We should not establish an expensive congressional select committee that uncovers no new major revelations. We should not cast aspersions on the patriotism and integrity of the Cabinet officials who oversaw the operation. And we should not threaten to cut funding for our soldiers’ personal protective equipment just as Republicans proposed cuts to our diplomatic security efforts in the wake of the Benghazi investigation. We should not follow their example. It was a disgraceful chapter of congressional oversight that denigrated the sacrifice of four brave Americans.

Instead, I hope this tragedy informs a constructive response from Congress that examines how the Global War on Terror has evolved into a sustained, complex, and often under-the-radar campaign, the low visibility of which has stunted congressional and public engagement.

The controversy surrounding President Trump’s insensitive suggestion to Myesha Johnson, whose husband Sgt. La David Johnson was killed in the Niger attack, that he “knew what he signed up for” has obscured a far more serious question: do we, the American people, know what we have signed up for with regard to a possible war in Niger?

I have no doubt in the Pentagon’s ability to investigate what happened in Niger, what went wrong tactically, and how to prevent such ambushes in the future. But Congress has a responsibility too: to look at the big picture and consider the larger strategy in Niger and in our war against nebulous, non-state actors that continue to ignore borders as they seek to do us harm.