In the latest edition of Senator Sanders Unfiltered, a Brave New Films series where Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) responds to viewer questions on the issues of the day, Sanders discusses our policies in Afghanistan and why we need a “real national discussion” on an exit strategy from Afghanistan:

At a time when polls say that most American are opposed to the war in Afghanistan, it would be a travesty to our democratic ideals for there to be a continued military escalation in that country with virtually no public debate. And if there’s something I’ve learned from working in politics, it’s that Bernie Sanders is usually on the right side of that debate.

To those of you who don’t know who I am, my name is Zaid Jilani and I’m a Reporter-Blogger at ThinkProgress. ThinkProgress is a part of the Center for American Progress, which is one of the main intellectual forces behind our current strategy in Afghanistan.. I know what you’re thinking, “Well that doesn’t make a lot of sense.”

While it’s true that I’m a Reporter-Blogger for ThinkProgress, I’m also a concerned citizen of this country. And as a citizen, I feel that our military occupation in Afghanistan is completely wrongheaded and has to be debated, instead of simply being allowed to go on with little discussion.

I have deep disagreements with my colleagues like Lawrence Korb, and I want to use this space to voice many of those disagreements. It’s time we, as Sanders recommends, have a real national debate about the war in Afghanistan and our greater national priorities. It’s in the spirit of a liberal democracy that I encourage you to reach out to your friends, co-workers, neighbors, and whoever else will listen, and ask them to rethink their views on what’s happening in Afghanistan. Encourage a lively debate — that’s the only way we’ll turn our disastrous course around.