Father of slain Southern California Marine escorted out of State of the Union address
Capitol police escorted the father of a slain U.S. Marine from Southern California out of the State of the Union address after interrupting President Joe Biden's speech on Thursday.
"Last night at approximately 10:15 p.m., a man disrupted the State of the Union Address by yelling," the United States Capitol Police said in a statement. "Disrupting the Congress and demonstrating in the Congressional Buildings is illegal."
Steven Nikoui, 51, shouted, "remember Abbey Gate," before Capitol Police took him out of the chamber. He was arrested for a misdemeanor. People who illegally demonstrate or disrupt a session of Congress typically receive a $50 fine and are released after payment.
Abbey Gate was the site of the 2021 terrorist attack at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan. The blast killed 170 civilians and 13 U.S. service members, including Nikoui's son, Lance Cpl. Kareem Nikoui.
Florida Rep. Brian Mast invited the 51-year-old to the State of the Union. In a blog post on his congressional website, Mast said he invited Steve to remind Biden about the "damage he has done to national security and American families."
"I am honored to have Steve Nikoui as my guest to #SOTU," Mast tweeted. "He is the father of LCpl. Kareem Nikoui, who was KIA due to Biden's disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan."
After Nikoui's outbursts, Mast tweeted his support of the Gold Star father.
"For the last three SOTU speeches, Joe Biden REFUSED to say the names of the 13 U.S. service members who were killed by his disastrous Afghanistan withdrawal," the congressman tweeted.
In Norco, residents honored Lance Cpl. Kareem Nikoui and the 12 slain service members with a permanent memorial.
