(UnitedVoice.com) – President Biden gave his final State of the Union speech on March 7. The dad of a fallen Marine was in attendance — and police arrested him.
During the speech, 51-year-old Steve Nikoui yelled, “Abbey Gate, Abbey Gate.” The grieving father was referring to the entrance of the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Afghanistan, where suicide bombers killed 13 US service members, including Marine Kareem Nikoui, and over 170 Afghans. ISIS-K later took responsibility for the mass murder.
Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL) invited Nikoui to the event. Capitol Police officers reportedly asked him to stop shouting, but he refused. That’s when the officers removed the Gold Star father from the chamber.
The police issued a statement saying he was interrupted with a misdemeanor charge of Crowding, Obstructing, or Incommoding. According to officers, it’s a “routine charge on Capitol Hill.” The statement went on to say that those charged with illegally disrupting Congress are usually “released after they pay a $50 fine,” and the issue is “resolved without going to court.”
Rep. Mast spoke to the media after, saying he observed Capitol Police escort Nikoui out by grabbing him by the arm. He said it infuriated him, and he didn’t know how Nikoui stayed calm.
The lawmaker said that he visited Nikoui in a holding cell, and he was released around 1 a.m. the next day. Mast said he couldn’t believe the grieving father was arrested for yelling at the president and demanding he remember the day his son was killed. He went on to say, “This is America,” and everyone’s First Amendment rights were paid for in the blood of people like Nikoui’s son.
Nikoui and others blame the president for the botched withdrawal from Afghanistan. The Gold Star father has repeatedly expressed his anger over how his son died and the belief that the government failed him.
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