McCaul says he will hold Blinken in contempt after State Department shrugs off his demands for testimony

Foreign Affairs Chairman Rep. Mike McCaul said he still intends to haul in Antony Blinken on the Afghanistan withdrawal even after his sprawling report was completed, and will hold him in contempt of Congress if he does not comply.

"This was a catastrophic failure of epic proportions," the Texas Republican told reporters on Monday. "This is a disgrace. I will hold him in contempt if that’s what it takes to bring him before the American people."

"Secretary Blinken refuses to take one day out of this month to come before the [Gold Star] families."

McCaul’s comments came on the heels of a 350-page report he released Monday on the withdrawal that the committee worked on for much of the past nearly two years of the Republican majority.

It laid much blame on the State Department and detailed how State officials had no plan for getting Americans and allies out while there were still troops there to protect them.

McCaul subpoenaed Blinken last week, saying he must appear before the committee by Sept. 19.

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State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel shrugged off the committee’s threats.

"The majority isn't truly interested in legislating on Afghanistan policy. If they were, they would have sought to speak to the secretary long ago," he told reporters Monday.

"They would have sought to speak to him to get his input as they make this report," he said. "Instead they waited until the report was completely finished to come back to us."

In May, McCaul asked Blinken to appear at a hearing in September on the committee's report on its investigation of the withdrawal from Afghanistan. The State Department failed on several occasions to provide a date for Blinken to