A Congresswoman’s Mother’s Day in Afghanistan

Ericka Andersen / May 15, 2011

America was victorious in killing Osama Bin Laden but the war against terrorism wages on. Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Vice-Chair of the House Republican Conference, traveled to Afghanistan just days after Bin Laden was killed and came away strengthened by a novel idea: empowering women in Afghanistan is an important step to winning the war on terror.

“Empowering women is a key to our national security efforts to ensure that Afghanistan is not a haven for terrorists,” said McMorris Rodgers in an interview Friday afternoon. “Terrorists gain strength by oppressing people — by oppressing women – and as we give more opportunities to women, it will undermine the terrorists’ control.”

McMorris Rodgers, who went on the third annual women’s Codel to the country, spoke with both American and Afghani military forces about their reactions to the news of Bin Laden’s death. The response from Americans overseas was predictably one of celebration and victory while the response from Afghanis was one of vigilance: “this was a reason to tell Members of Congress why America needs to stay in Afghanistan.” (more…)