A Gold Star father was arrested at the State of the Union Thursday night after interrupting President Joe Biden’s speech by shouting references to the Biden administration’s disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.
According to Fox News, Steve Nikoui, age 51, was arrested and removed from the House Galleries during the president’s speech Thursday night after repeatedly shouting “United States Marines” and Abbey Gate” at Biden. Nikoui’s 20-year old son, Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Kareem M. Nikoui, was killed alongside 12 other U.S. service members in an ISIS-K terrorist attack at the Kabul Airport during the Biden administration’s withdrawal from Afghanistan.
A video of Steve Nikoui’s interruption of the president’s speech shows the moment Biden froze before moving ahead with his speech as the Gold Star father was removed from the chamber.
“The year before I took office, murder rates went up 30%…” Biden said before Nikoui’s shouts filled the chamber. After multiple shouts of “Abbey Gate” and “United States Marines, Biden appeared to freeze before adding, “The biggest increase in history.”
Nikoui, was at the State of the Union Thursday as one of the guests of Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fla.). Mast currently serves as the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Accountability and Oversight. Prior to Thursday’s State of the Union, Mast released a statement regarding his invitation to the Gold Star father.
“By inviting Steve to join the State of the Union, I am reminding President Biden of the damage he has done to national security and American families,” Mast wrote.
Despite being confronted by security guards for interrupting the president’s speech, the Gold Star father continued to shout until he was escorted out of the chamber by security officials, according to Fox News.
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Fox News reported that after being arrested by Capitol Police, Nikoui was charged with a misdemeanor for “crowding, obstructing, or incommoding.”
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Mast criticized the Biden administration for refusing “accountability” for the disastrous Afghanistan withdrawal and instead choosing to arrest the Gold Star father on Thursday.
“My guest to #SOTU was Steve Nikoui, a father whose son was killed because of Biden’s incompetent Afghanistan withdrawal,” Mast tweeted. “Biden wouldn’t acknowledge him or take accountability for his son’s death. Instead, they ARRESTED him. This is Biden’s America. Please spread the truth ASAP!”
