During Biden’s State of the Union Speech last week, Gold Star father, Steve Nikoui, was arrested for an outburst targeted at President Biden, interrupting his speech. Nikoui since explained that his intention was to have Biden acknowledge the deaths of his son, U.S. Marine Kareem Nikoui, and a dozen other service during the catastrophic withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.
The father noted that he had debated whether to even attend the State of the Union, where he was invited as a guest of Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL). Nikoui’s son was tragically killed following the detonation of a bomb by a terrorist at Abbey Gate in Afghanistan’s Hamid Karzai International Airport. “It was an awkward dynamic,” he said, discussing his attendance. “I wanted to go, but I also didn’t want to go. And when I was there, seeing the theatrics, the circus … it just got to me.”
At one point during the speech, Bide stated, “America is safer today than when I took office.” Nikoui said that he thought to himself, “Do you remember that my kid was not safe?” Following this thought, he stood up and shouted his son’s name, followed by the question, “Do you remember Abbey Gate? U.S Marines?”
Following the outburst, the father of the fallen Marine calmly exited at the demand of Capitol police. Nikoui was then placed in handcuffs and charged with a misdemeanor for “crowding, obstructing, or incommoding” during a protest. This charge brings a fine of up to $500 and 90 days in prison.
Nikoui also explained to the Daily Wire that he holds the utmost respect for the President of the United States. However, he also commented on Biden’s 2022 State of the Union Address, noting that he was offended when the president failed to properly acknowledge the fallen soldiers when speaking of the Afghanistan withdrawal.
“I remember I watched for like 56 minutes,” he recalls, becoming visibly emotional. “And then finally [Biden] brings up Afghanistan. But he never said my kid’s name, you know? I didn’t even need him to say he made a mistake or take blame. I just wanted him to say, ‘The United States will never forget the brave service of Staff Sergeant Taylor Hoover…’ and then go on down the list of the other 12. Just say, ‘We will never forget.’ That’s all he had to do. But he didn’t do that. Instead, he beelined for, ‘My son Beau died of cancer, and that’s why I think the existential threat to our military is the burning of diesel fuel in burning pits. Because I think that’s how Beau got his cancer.’ I just started crying.”
The Gold Star father proceeded to illustrate how Trump’s handling of the U.S. military’s presence in the region might have kept his son alive. “They were told to leave 2,500 troops there. 2,000 troops could have manned Bagram and then 500 extra to help. And that was in place in the agreement,” he said, talking about a withdrawal agreement made under the leadership of former President Donald Trump. “But [Biden] took it to something like 136 troops. If they would have followed Trump’s agreement, my son would be alive.”
See footage of Nikoui’s outburst below.
Note: The Featured image is a screenshot from the embedded video.
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