Steve Nikoui is the father of Kareem Nikoui, a service member killed in the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021. He also interrupted Biden’s State of the Union Address in early March, shouting about the 13 Marines killed outside the Kabul Airport during the precipitous retreat from the country. He was arrested for his shouting, but quickly released, and now the charges have been dropped.
As background, Mr. Nikoui was brought to the State of the Union address by Rep. Brian Mast. Rep. Mast, tweeting about why he was bringing Mr. Nikoui, said, “I am honored to have Steve Nikoui as my guest to #SOTU. He is the father of LCpl. Kareem Nikoui, who was KIA due to Biden’s disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan. @JoeBiden may try to turn the page on Afghanistan after his incompetence cost American lives, but NOT ON MY WATCH.”
Shortly after the arrest, Mast took to X and said: “The Sergeant at Arms is holding my State of the Union guest for yelling at @POTUS in protest because his son was killed in action at the Abbey Gate due to Biden’s incompetence. So much for the right to petition our government for the redress of grievances.”
It was Brian Schwalb, the Democratic Attorney General in Washington, D.C., who decided to drop the charges against Mr. Nikoui, who was arrested for disrupting Congress. The charge on which Capitol Police arrested him was a misdemeanor, Crowding, Obstructing, or Incommoding. Defending the arrest at the time, the Capitol Police said, “disrupting the Congress and demonstrating in Congressional Buildings is illegal.”
In any case, he was soon released from jail on that night, and now Fox News Digital reports that it learned on the evening of Tuesday, March 19 that AG Schwalb dropped the charges against Mr. Nikoui. According to the AG’s office, it decided not to prosecute the case against Mr. Nikoui and has decided to not prosecute similar cases against past protesters.
Mr. Nikoui commented to the Daily Mail after his arrest that he interrupted President Biden because of the disrespectful attitude Biden seemed to have toward service members and their families. He said, “I was just strongly convicted by the Holy Spirit to stand up and say that after sitting there for almost an hour of just total disrespect to us. He knew that there were other Gold Star family members, he could of at least just said their names and this would have been done.”
He added, “Joe Biden, personally, is the reason for that fiasco. 100%.” He then said that, though he blames Biden, he also finds General Mark Milley’s conduct reprehensible, saying, “I’m mad at Milley and Mackenzie, because I feel like they should have been bold and taking a stand and resign. Maybe it would have changed the course of history.”
Watch Mr. Nikoui interrupt Biden here:
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