During the presidential debate with Donald J. Trump on September 10, 2024, incumbent Vice President Harris stated, “As of today, there is not a single active-duty member of the United States military serving in a combat zone.” This statement seemed to affirm the safety of the United States under the current Biden administration, but many politicians and military experts consider it a false one.
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According to statistics from the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), the United States maintains a significant military presence in the Middle East, with forces in more than a dozen countries and on ships throughout the region’s waters. That presence expanded in 2024 as the United States focused on deterring and defeating threats from Iran and its network of regional affiliates, including Hamas (Gaza Strip), Hezbollah (Lebanon), the Houthis (Yemen), and several militant groups based in Iraq and Syria.
The organization estimates a 7,900 U.S. military personnel permanently stationed in the Middle East and surrounding countries, all in dangerous war zones.
Most recently, just three days after Harris made her remarks at the presidential debate, U.S. Central Command announced that it had partnered with Iraqi forces to kill 14 ISIS fighters and 4 commanders.
U.S. Central Command is one of the Department of Defense’s 11 unified combatant commands. The department was created in 1983, taking over the responsibilities of the Joint Rapid Deployment Task Force. Its area of responsibility includes the Middle East, Central Asia, and parts of South Asia.
In response to the vice president's false statements, Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fla.) sent an inquiry to the Biden administration on Wednesday, asking when Vice President Kamala Harris last received intelligence briefings on U.S. troops overseas.
In the inquiry, Mast wrote: "Given that Ms. Harris is second in line to the presidency, it is important for Congress to know whether her comments were intentional misinformation, brain fog under pressure, or a failure to attend relevant intelligence briefings."
The moderators of that day's debate, David Muir and Linsey Davis of ABC News, were also criticized for failing to fact-check Harris' statements, including the above false statement, while repeatedly applying the check to Trump.
