Monday marks three years since 13 U.S. service members were killed in the failed withdrawal from Afghanistan. One congressman predicts the current administration will not do nearly enough to honor their sacrifices.
Rep. Mike Waltz (R-Fla.) told DailyMail.com he does not expect to “hear anything” from Vice President Kamala Harris and said it is likely that President Joe Biden will send an official statement from the White House.
But that’s not enough, the first Green Beret to serve in Congress noted.
Republicans are furious with Biden and Harris over the chaotic, deadly and botched withdrawal from Afghanistan after a 20-year war, blaming them for the deaths of 13 American soldiers.
“I don’t think you’ll hear anything this entire week, and that’s such a shame,” Waltz speculated when asked what he thought Biden and Harris would do to celebrate the third anniversary.
President Joe Biden looked at his watch as he and First Lady Jill Biden received the caskets of 13 U.S. service members who lost their lives in the failed troop withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021.
“It’s just a disservice,” the congressman continued. “Maybe at best you’ll see a statement Monday.”
“But he still hasn’t named all of them, he still hasn’t given the families the answers they deserve.”
But Waltz makes it clear that Harris is also to blame.
The vice president and 2024 Democratic nominee has repeatedly said that she and Biden are pleased with their decision to withdraw all U.S. troops from Afghanistan and that they are pleased with the manner in which it has been carried out.
She has also said in interviews that she was the last person in the room with Biden before they decided to pull the trigger on the withdrawal and that she took as much responsibility for the decision as the sitting president.
The withdrawal from Afghanistan resulted in a chaotic, deadly scene as people rushed to be evacuated at Kabul’s Hamid Karzai International Airport. An explosion at Abbey Gate killed 13 U.S. troops on August 26, 2021
An explosion in the chaos of the withdrawal killed 13 American soldiers (pictured above)
The 13 soldiers who died during the withdrawal are:
Lance Cpl. David L. Espinoza, 20, of Rio Bravo, Texas
Sgt. Nicole L. Gee, 23, of Sacramento, California
Staff Sergeant Darin T. Hoover, 31, of Salt Lake City, Utah
Staff Sergeant Ryan C. Knauss, 23, of Corryton, Tennessee
Corporal Hunter Lopez, 22, of Indio, California
Lance Cpl. Dylan R. Merola, 20, of Rancho Cucamonga, California
Lance Cpl. Rylee J. McCollum, 20, of Jackson, Wyoming
Lance Cpl. Kareem M. Nikoui, 20, of Norco, California
Corporal Daegan W. Page, 23, of Omaha, Nebraska
Sergeant Johanny Rosario Pichardo, 25, of Lawrence, Massachusetts
Corporal Humberto A. Sanchez, 22, of Logansport, Indiana
Lance Cpl. Jared M. Schmitz, 20, of St. Charles, Missouri
Marine Corpsman Maxton W. Soviak, 22, of Berlin Heights, Ohio
They all served in the Marine Corps except Soviak, who served in the Navy, and Knauss, who served in the Army.
According to Waltz, the least they can do for the families of the fallen is to put them in a room with the decision makers of that day, so they can get answers to all their questions about that day.
Rep. Mike Waltz, the first Green Beret to serve in Congress, told DailyMail.com he doesn’t expect to “hear a peep” from the Biden-Harris administration honoring fallen service members
“I mean, if it were me, you know, you could lock up the generals and the diplomats and everybody involved with the family until they can’t ask any more questions. That’s their prerogative,” he said of what he’d like to see from Biden and Harris.
What is so judgmental and insulting to them is to hear [Biden] “It’s a success and there’s no accountability,” Waltz lamented in his interview with DailyMail.com in Chicago, Illinois, on Wednesday, on the sidelines of the Democratic National Convention.
“In fact, the woman responsible for coordinating the evacuation is being promoted. She’s been nominated as the ambassador of Iraq,” he mocked.
“So not only is there no accountability, they’re also elevating and promoting the people who are responsible. It’s just infuriating.”