Thursday, described by even the liberal mainstream media as "the worst day of Biden's presidency," was the deadliest day for the U.S. military in Afghanistan in a decade. At least thirteen service members died, which means 13 families received tragic news about their lost loved ones. The identities of these service members are starting to come in, which Julio has covered. One such family member, Steve Nikoui, whose 20-year old son, Kareem, shared how he was "still in shock" over that "excruciating day" with The Daily Beast.
As Justin Rohrlich and Willian Bredderman reported for the outlet, with added emphasis:
Through tears, Nikoui expressed flashes of anger along with his anguish. He said he wants to “respect the office” of the president, but doesn’t have much love for President Joe Biden at the moment. A Trump supporter, Nikoui was happy that Trump was in office when Kareem joined the Marines. “I really believed this guy didn’t want to send people into harm’s way,” he said.
“They sent my son over there as a paper pusher and then had the Taliban outside providing security,” said Nikoui. “I blame my own military leaders… Biden turned his back on him. That’s it.”
Speaking of former President Donald Trump, he rightfully reminded voters just how different the situation would be if he were still in office. Julio reported on video remarks Trump from Trump released on Thursday.
A particularly memorable part of Biden's presidency lately has been the image of him turning his back as he leaves the room after delivering remarks on Afghanistan, after he's shown up late. Often times it's without even taking questions from the press.
Even when he has taken questions, as he did on Thursday, he is no more comforting or coherent. The president raised many eyebrows when he casually said out loud that "ladies and gentlemen, they gave me a list here" and that whoever "they" were, had "instructed" him on who he should call on, and in what order. It's right there in the official White House transcript.
But, as Nikoui shared as he mourns his son's death, Biden turning his back takes on a whole new meaning.