A Gold Star father who shouted out criticisms at President Biden during the State of the Union address has been arrested.
Steve Nikoui, 51, is the father of a U.S. marine who was killed during the botched withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.
Nikoui was escorted out of the House Galleries during Biden’s speech after he stood up and began yelling “Abbey Gate” repeatedly.
The heckling was a reference to an attack at the Abbey Gate of Hamid Karzai International Airport in Afghanistan that occurred during the military’s withdrawal from the country.
The surprise attack killed 13 U.S. service members and injured at least 170 civilians — including Nikoui’s son, Marine Lance Cpl. Kareem Nikoui.
Nikoui was confronted by security during his outburst, who demanded he stop. He refused and continued shouting.
He was removed from the House Galleries and arrested by Capitol Police on the misdemeanor charge of Crowding, Obstructing or Incommoding.
Nikoui was in attendance as a guest of Florida Rep. Brian Mast, who released a statement explaining his choice to bring the Gold Star father to the Capitol.
“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 ahead of the State of the Union address.
Mast is the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Accountability and Oversight.
https://twitter.com/saras76/status/1766091329115705788?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1766103404483424305%7Ctwgr%5E1feb18cc54ee7d33363bff170ce9fe09ecafaa87%7Ctwcon%5Es3_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fconservatics.com%2Fgold-star-dad-steve-nikoui-arrested-after-heckling-president-during-speech%2F
Which is worse?
The arrest of this gold star father at Biden’s SOTU, one of the 13 Marines killed in Biden’s botched Afghanistan pull out?
Or Nancy Pelosi ripping up Trump’s SOTU speech? pic.twitter.com/KLlrRoBaHZ
— SixPack™️ (@starkrob21) March 8, 2024
