U.S. Rep. Martha Roby (R-AL) met with U.S. military leaders and their Iraqi counterparts in Baghdad on Monday to review the growing concerns of security threats in the region.
Roby is traveling throughout the Middle East with a high-profile delegation of U.S. legislators, evaluating the status of the various locations and the troubling influence of ISIS and Iran.
Led by Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-OH), the group spent time with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, Speaker of the Council of Representatives of Iraq Salim al-Jabouri; U.S. Ambassador Stuart Jones; and Lt. General James L. Terry, the commander of the Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve.
“We had a number of high-level meetings with both Iraqi and U.S. leaders in Baghdad to gain a firsthand understanding of efforts to degrade and defeat ISIS,” Roby, who serves on the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction & Veterans Affairs, said. “Our discussions with U.S. military commanders, our ambassador and elected Iraqi officials were productive, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to hear directly from them.”
The delegation also stopped in Jordan, where the group of legislators met with His Majesty King Abdullah II, U.S. Ambassador Alice Wells, Jordan Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh and other senior embassy officials.
“With sequestration in place, there is a real threat to future defense funding that will directly impact our military’s ability to respond to emerging threats around the world,” Roby added. “Meanwhile, global security issues are only growing more complex. I’m pleased that the House budget passed last week represents a first step in addressing the sequestration issue in the near term, but traveling in the Middle East underscores for me the importance of correcting sequestration for the long run. I think it is important that defense-minded members have a seat at the table, and it’s my responsibility to make sure that point of view is represented.”
The delegation also included Reps. John Kline (R-MN), chairman of the House Education & the Workforce Committee; Devin Nunes (R-CA), chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence; Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East & North Africa; Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-NJ), chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense; Tom Cole (R-OK), chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health, & Human Services; Ken Calvert (R-CA), chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior and a member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense; Mike Simpson (R-ID), chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy & Water; and George Holding (R-NC), a member of the House Ways & Means Subcommittee on Oversight.