In a shocking incident several family members of the US Marines, killed in Afghanistan had to wait for more than three hours while President Joe Biden slept aboard his Air Force One aircraft.
The President had arrived to be part of a ceremony for 13 US service members killed in a suicide bombing at Kabul’s Abbey Gate in 2021. The US military had organized a formal ceremony to receive the remains of the servicemen.
This occurred during the dignified transfer ceremony for 13 US service members killed in a suicide explosion at Kabul’s Abbey Gate on August 26, 2021, which killed American servicemen and over 170 Afghan civilians.
According to the families of the mmartyred marines, they came to Dover Air Force Base to pay their respects and witness the return of their loved ones’ remains. However, the soldiers advised them that President Biden was not available since he was sleeping on the plane.
“Biden made us wait an extra three hours to receive the bodies of our dead family members because he couldn’t pull it together”, McCollum, sister of Marine Rylee McCollum said.
Other family members agreed, characterizing the event as an added insult to an already sad situation. Taylor Hoover, father of one of the ceased marine soldiers, stated, “We sat in that office for what seemed like an eternity waiting on the doddering old fool.”
The families viewed the situation as deeply demeaning and disrespectful. Christy Shamblin, Marine Sgt. Nicole Gee’s mother-in-law and Darin Hoover, Staff Sgt. Taylor Hoover’s father, expressed similar feelings, believing that the administration’s lack of personal connection to their stories exacerbated their loss. During the ceremony, Biden was also criticized for repeatedly checking his watch, which increased the families’ sentiments of disrespect.
A White House spokesman responded to the accusations by refuting them and stating that the president respects and honours the families of dead servicemen. “That claim is untrue,” the official said, underscoring Biden’s pledge to pay back the country’s debt to these families.
What is troubling for the White House is that that such incidents have been far too common under the Biden Presidency. Previously, the President had bizarrely got lost on stage. He fell down during a parade, and had even fallen off a bicycle at another event.
Biden once even addressed the Ukrainian President Zelensky as Putin. Such gaffes have become a regular occurrence so much so that Donald Trump dubbed the sitting President as ‘Sleepy Joe’.
President elect Donald Trump’s inauguration is only a few weeks away, and the White House officials would be hoping that Joe Biden is able to avoid any further embarrassments in the final days of his Presidency.
