Congressman Silvestre Reyes (D-TX) Ranking Member of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces released the following statement this evening on the President's speech on Afghanistan:  

"As a Vietnam combat veteran who has experienced the hardships of war on soldiers and their families, I have emphasized America must set forth a clearly-defined military strategy with measurable objectives that will lead to a responsible conclusion in Afghanistan.  The decision to bring 33,000 of our men and women home, after more than a decade of military engagement in Afghanistan, comes after our soldiers have made considerable progress in weakening al Qaeda and the Taliban, and empowering the Afghan people to take more responsibility for their own security.

"As the President made clear, our soldiers will not bear the responsibility for Afghanistan's security indefinitely.  After a decade of sacrifices by our troops, and their families, in addition to the considerable resources expended by the American people, the time has come to responsibly transition more of Afghanistan's security to the people of Afghanistan, in a manner that does not jeopardize the hard fought gains that have been made.  America can not and will not turn its back to the serious security challenges and threats that will continue to confront Afghanistan and the region, but we must begin a process that responsibly brings this long and difficult mission to a close."