Rep. Michael McCaul harshly criticized President Joe Biden, saying on Tuesday that the president will "have blood on his hands" after the commander in chief announced that the United States will not extend the Aug. 31 deadline for withdrawing American troops from Afghanistan, Fox News reported.
''I can tell you there's no way we can humanly get all of our American citizens and Afghan partners out of country by that time,'' McCaul, a Texas Republican, said in a press briefing. ''I've called this consistently an unmitigated disaster of epic proportions. It will be a stain on this presidency, and particularly of the decision made today, and what we heard today. He will have blood on his hands. People are going to die."
Biden's announcement came after Taliban leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar and CIA Director William Burns met in Kabul and a Taliban spokesman said there would be no extension of the deadline.
Many others joined McCaul in denouncing Biden's decision, with Missouri GOP Rep. Vicky Hartzler tweeting that "Joe Biden's botched withdrawal stranded Americans in Afghanistan. After August 31, he'll officially abandon them. Disgraceful."
Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas called the decision completely unacceptable.
''Joe Biden and Kamala Harris never had a plan to get all Americans out, and they need to formulate one immediately. Leaving behind Americans is NOT an option,'' he tweeted.
North Carolina GOP Rep. Dan Bishop was equally scathing in his disapproval of the president, writing on Twitter that ''Biden is bowing to terrorists. Plain and simple.''
Biden's decision to keep the Aug. 31 deadline in place came despite heavy pressure to extend the withdrawal date in order to rescue all U.S. citizens and Afghan refugees, according to Fox.
U.S. officials said on Tuesday that the military had evacuated 21,600 people from Kabul in the previous 24 hours, bringing the total number of people evacuated since Aug. 14 to some 58,700.
But the Biden administration acknowledges that it is unable to say exactly how many Americans remain in Afghanistan.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Monday argued that Americans are not "stranded" in Afghanistan, saying: "I think it's irresponsible to say Americans are stranded. They are not. We are committed to bringing Americans who want to come home, home."