--- title: Sen. Carl Levin: We Should Be Proud of Afghanistan Progress description: Retiring Michigan Democrat and chairman of the Armed Service Committee says things are getting better all the time in Afghanistan canonical: https://time.com/3430404/carl-levin-afghanistan/ author: Mark Thompson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-09-25T17:08:07.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T05:07:40.400Z article:section: Politics og:title: Sen. Carl Levin: We Should Be Proud of Afghanistan Progress og:description: Retiring Michigan Democrat and chairman of the Armed Service Committee says things are getting better all the time in Afghanistan og:url: https://time.com/3430404/carl-levin-afghanistan/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0df0cd31e3377df1/6986a5723bc9996c2c1a58a7/104944226.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: Levin Briefs On Investigation Into Private Security Contractors In Afghanistan og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Sen. Carl Levin: We Should Be Proud of Afghanistan Progress twitter:description: Retiring Michigan Democrat and chairman of the Armed Service Committee says things are getting better all the time in Afghanistan twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0df0cd31e3377df1/6986a5723bc9996c2c1a58a7/104944226.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Senior Democrat: We Should Be Proud of Afghanistan Progress > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. 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Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. by [Mark Thompson](https://time.com/author/mark-thompson/) ## Mark Thompson Sep 25, 2014 5:08 PM UTC  Carl Levin, retiring chairman of the armed services committee, thinks Americans have a "distorted" view of what the U.S. has accomplished in Afghanistan. Carl Levin, retiring chairman of the armed services committee, thinks Americans have a "distorted" view of what the U.S. has accomplished in Afghanistan. Alex Wong / Getty Images by [Mark Thompson](https://time.com/author/mark-thompson/) ## Mark Thompson Sep 25, 2014 5:08 PM UTC Senator [Carl Levin](http://www.levin.senate.gov/), the Michigan Democrat who chairs the armed services committee, is leaving the Senate after 36 years. He spent Wednesday’s breakfast with a bunch of defense reporters responding to their questions on the U.S.-led attacks against Islamic militants and the Pentagon’s budget crunch. Levin is no bomb-thrower or partisan hack. When we offered him the chance to say a final word at the end of his final breakfast with us, we listened: --- > “” ---  Carl Levin, center, on a 2011 visit to Afghanistan. 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