Sens. John McCain (R., Ariz.) and Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.) released a joint statement Monday regarding increased violence by al Qaeda terrorists in Iraq.
The senators said the situation in Iraq was "predictable."
"While many Iraqis are responsible for this strategic disaster, the [Obama] administration cannot escape its share of the blame," the senators said. "When President Obama withdrew all U.S. forces from Iraq in 2011, over the objections of our military leaders and commanders on the ground, many of us predicted that the vacuum would be filled by America's enemies and would emerge as a threat to U.S. national security interests."
They also said the administration has failed in Syria.
"It has sat by and refused to take any meaningful action, while the conflict has claimed more than 130,000 lives, driven a quarter of the Syrian population from their homes, fueled the resurgence of Al-Qaeda, and devolved into a regional conflict that now threatens our national security interests and the stability of Syria's neighbors, especially Iraq. All of this, too, was predictable," they said.
The senators concluded their statement saying the lessons of Iraq must be applied in Afghanistan in order to secure national security interests.