Washington, DC– Congressman David B. McKinley, P.E., (WV-1) introduced a resolution calling for the Taliban in Afghanistan to be declared a “foreign terrorist organization” by the Obama Administration. The resolution was introduced in response to White House Deputy Press Secretary Eric Shultz’s refusal to call the Taliban terrorists in his January 28 briefing and the Obama Administration’s refusal to acknowledge the Taliban’s true nature.

“If we cannot call our enemy what they are, then how can we fight them? It is nonsensical for the President to insist the Taliban is not a terrorist group when they safeguard terrorists, target civilians, and murder Americans,” said McKinley.

Under federal law, a “foreign terrorist organization” is a group that is a) foreign, b) engaged in terrorist activity, and c) threatens the security of the United States or its citizens. The White House refuses to name the Taliban as “terrorists” despite the Department of the Treasury and the National Counterterrorism Center designating the Taliban as a terrorist organization.

“Americans deserve leaders who tell them the truth, not equivocation and misleading wordplay,”added McKinley.