Gold Star dad sends message to VP Harris 3 years after Abbey Gate attack: 'She owns this'
Grieving Gold Star parents tore into the Biden-Harris administration Monday as the nation marked three years since the terrorist attack at Afghanistan's Kabul airport claimed the lives of 13 U.S. service members.
Though the scrutiny has largely remained on President Biden in the years since, one Gold Star dad who lost his son in the Abbey Gate attack was determined not to let Vice President Kamala Harris off the hook.
"She owns this as much as he [Biden] does," Mark Schmitz, father of late Marine Lance Cpl. Jared Schmitz, told "Fox & Friends."
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"She's following in the policies that Joe Biden has ushered in during his presidency and obviously, neither one of them know what the heck they're doing. And that terrifies me, because we know we can't bring our kids back," he continued.
"But what we want to see is the military that is out in the field right now – those families are never going to be put through what we've been put through. It's been absolutely shameful."
Harris issued a statement Monday addressing the anniversary of the attack by listing the names of those lost and making a pledge to "fulfill our sacred obligation to care for our troops and their families" and "always honor their service and sacrifice."
"Today and everyday, I mourn and honor them. My prayers are with their families and loved ones. My heart breaks for their pain and their loss. These 13 devoted patriots represent the best of America, putting our beloved nation and their fellow Americans above themselves and deploying into danger to keep their fellow citizens safe," the statement read in part.
She continued later, "As I have said, President Biden made the courageous and right decision to end America’s longest war. Over the past three years, our Administration has demonstrated we can still eliminate terrorists, including the leaders of al-Qaeda and ISIS, without troops deployed into combat zones. I will never hesitate to take whatever action necessary to counter terrorist threats and protect the American people and the homeland."
Gold Star mom Shana Chappell, who also spoke to Fox News on Monday, specifically blamed the current administration for the death of her son, Marine Lance Cpl. Kareem Nikoui.
"I blame Biden for the death of my son, so anything I have to say to the Biden-Harris administration would probably not be something that could be shared on the news," she said.
"The Biden administration is 100% at fault for why my son lost his life, and now I look at the way our country is going, and I think this is not what my son died for. He did not die to watch our country go down the path that's going," she added.
Consumed by grief for his brother, another one of Chappell's sons later took his own life.
In July, the National Security Council commented on Biden's "gratitude" for U.S. service members with the following statement:
"President Biden cares deeply about our service members, their families, and the immense sacrifices they have made. That’s why the President attended the dignified transfer of the 13 brave service members who lost their lives in Afghanistan on August 26, 2021; as well as, of the three who lost their lives in Jordan earlier this year," NSC spokesperson Adrienne Watson said. "As he said then and continues to believe now: Our country owes them a great deal of gratitude and a debt that we can never repay, and we will continue to honor their ultimate sacrifice."