Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove, a California Democrat, said on Oct. 31 that President Donald Trump has “repeatedly broken our promise” to Afghans who served alongside U.S. forces. Her post responded to a report that the administration plans to deport dozens of Afghans through Pakistan.
Kamlager-Dove posted the statement at 1:25 p.m. on Oct. 31, attaching a newspaper article published Oct. 30 on the planned deportations. Her full post reads:
“Trump has repeatedly broken our promise to the Afghan allies who bravely served alongside us.
These individuals stood with the United States throughout a 20-year war, serving alongside American troops in combat. In return, we made a promise to protect them after the Taliban’s takeover.
Abandoning that commitment not only betrays our allies, it sends a dangerous message to future partners that U.S. promises cannot be trusted. This is not a partisan issue; it’s an American issue.”
The Article She Attached
The article, headlined “U.S. to Send Dozens Back to Afghanistan, Despite Risk of Persecution,” says the administration has detained dozens of Afghan immigrants in Louisiana and plans to deport them, citing three U.S. officials. More than 150 are expected to be deported, one official said, which would make it one of the largest single expulsions of Afghans.
The plan would fly the group from Louisiana to Pakistan, where officials expect Pakistan to expel them across the border. The first flight is expected as soon as Nov. 2. The route avoids two obstacles: the U.S. has no diplomatic relations with the Taliban and so cannot arrange direct deportations, and some Afghans hold judicial protections barring return.
The group reportedly includes relatives of people who helped the U.S. military and at least one gay man. It also includes people who came to the U.S. legally and illegally, and some with criminal records. U.S. law bars deportation to countries where courts have ruled a person would likely face persecution, and the article says it is unknown whether any of the Afghans have such protections.
A Department of Homeland Security spokesman said ICE does not comment on prospective removal operations, including flight schedules, destinations or individual case details. Pakistan’s interior and foreign ministries and Taliban officials did not respond to requests for comment.
Cases and Context
One man identified by his middle name, Mohammad, 47, said he was detained last year, moved to Louisiana last week and married an American man in 2020. Government documents reviewed by the newspaper show two 2003 felony convictions, which cost him his green card. His lawyer has filed emergency motions to block the deportation, and a judge had not ruled.
Data from the Deportation Data Project show about 97 Afghans were sent back to Afghanistan over the past four years. Earlier flights were generally reserved for people with serious criminal charges.
Kamlager-Dove’s Record
Kamlager-Dove is the ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on South and Central Asia. On Aug. 19, 2025, she introduced the Enduring Welcome Act (H.R. 4995) with bipartisan cosponsors including Reps. Mike Lawler, Michael McCaul, Zach Nunn and Dan Crenshaw. It would codify the Office of the Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts. At the time she said, “We will not turn our backs on the brave Afghans who risked everything to protect our service members.”
On Dec. 10, 2025, she issued a statement after Republicans removed her provision from the NDAA. She called the administration’s response to a shooting involving two National Guard members “collective punishment of Afghan refugees.” She said the administration had suspended asylum decisions, halted Special Immigrant Visa issuance and pursued deportations.
She has also co-signed letters supporting Afghan resettlement. These include a March 2025 letter, a December 2025 letter to the State Department and DHS, and a letter urging an additional 20,000 Afghan SIVs in the FY2026 appropriations bill.
On Feb. 11, 2026, she hosted a shadow hearing with Foreign Affairs Democrats on what she called the administration’s betrayal of Afghan allies. In February, she described the plan to close the relocation facility at Camp As Sayliyah in Qatar and move over 1,000 Afghans to third countries as “a living nightmare.” She also said the State Department was offering payments to Afghans to leave.
At an April news conference on a reported plan to relocate Afghans to Congo, she said the options of deportation to the Taliban or relocation to Congo amounted to “a death sentence.” In June, a bipartisan group of lawmakers asked the administration not to send Afghan allies to unsafe countries.
The Trump administration suspended the refugee admissions program on Jan. 20, 2025, and the same day halted travel for Special Immigrant Visa holders, according to reporting on her Enduring Welcome Act. The administration has not announced the deportation plan.