By Nicole Gaudiano

December 14, 2011

Rep. John Carney, who spent last weekend visiting Afghanistan, said he wants to continue spending only as much tax money there as necessary to keep terrorists out.

As troop levels draw down, Congress will need to decide how much to spend in Afghanistan over the next 10 years, the Delaware Democrat said.

"My interest is in making that as small a number as possible so that we can spend money improving our transportation systems here in the United States and other things, as well as bringing our budget into greater balance," said Carney, a member of the House Financial Services Committee.

All U.S. combat troops are scheduled to withdraw by the end of 2014. The war's price tag in fiscal 2011 was $117.5 billion, not including the Veterans Affairs Department's costs for treating injured service members.

Moving forward, Carney said, Congress will need to base its spending decisions on what it will cost to keep terrorists from establishing safe havens there. "That initial mission and goal has to be kept in mind," he said.

Carney visited military and civilian officials in Kabul and in Helmand and Kandahar provinces during his trip, which began Thursday night.

House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis., led the six- member delegation to learn about the financial implications of the war. Carney ended up as the only Democrat on the trip after two others dropped out.

"We didn't talk about politics, per se," Carney said. "They did from time to time, but, you know, I had other things to do by myself."

The trip, Carney's first to Afghanistan, gave him a first-hand look at the challenges facing the country's government. He said it's time for Afghan officials to "step up to the plate" and for the country's security forces to start taking over.

"They're leaning on us too much, I think, and in some ways that's understandable," he said. "But it's time for that transition to take place so we can move out on the schedule that the president has laid down."

Carney said he was encouraged by some of what he saw, including a village council that was moving effectively to take charge of local governing duties. An elder talked about the need and appreciation for U.S. assistance, he said.

But he said he has doubts about how successful the transition will be, given the Afghan government's problems with corruption. He heard stories about police exacting payments from people to get them out of jail or prevent them from being arrested.

"They're hustling, and that kind of corruption, which is rampant, is undermining the legitimacy of the government," he said.