Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis testifies during a House Armed Services Committee hearing on Capitol Hill, Oct. 3, 2017. Mattis testified alongside U.S. Marine Corps Gen. Joseph F. Dunford, Jr., chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, about the U.S. Defense strategy in South Asia. (DoD Photo by U.S. Army Sgt. James K. McCann)

(BIVN) – Hawaii’s Congresswomen, Colleen Hanabusa and Tulsi Gabbard, had a chance to question General Joseph F. Dunford Jr. , Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Defense Secretary James Mattis during an October 3 hearing in Washington.

The House Committee on Armed Services held the hearing on U.S. Defense Strategy in South Asia, and many of the questions focused on the 16 year Operation Enduring Freedom war in Afghanistan that has claimed the lives of 2,400 American service members. The Representatives wanted to know if American national security still warrants U.S. military presence in Afghanistan?