Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell just wrapped up a trip to Pakistan and Afghanistan with Senators Lindsey Graham, Richard Burr, Kelly Ayotte, Ron Johnson, Mark Rubio, and Pat Toomey (PA).
On a conference call with Florida reporters, Rubio said of the trip, from Kabul: “2001 is going to be a critical year for Afghan security forces.”
Of Pakistan, he said: “People want to make sure that we are in this for the long haul.” He said that the senators relayed that “The American people are not going to tolerate sanctuaries for al-Qaeda or the return of the Taliban to power.”