9/11 Families United National Chair Terry Strada slammed the Biden administration Friday over the revived plea deals for accused Sept. 11 terrorists, telling Newsmax that the move is "a cruel thing to do to the families" that lost loved ones.
"It's a betrayal to all of those that were murdered on that day," Strada said during an appearance on "Wake Up America." "It's a betrayal to all of the families left behind and to all of the rescue workers who are sick and dying. And it's what this government does. They have disappointed us time and time and time again, and I think it's time that they stop making these backroom deals with terrorists and begin to focus on what's important."
Strada called for state sponsors to be held accountable for the attacks.
"That's where the families will receive justice – in a U.S. courtroom, in federal court. Right now, we are suing the Kingdom [of Saudi Arabia] for giving all of the logistical and financial support for the murder of our loved ones and that is where the government needs to focus," Strada said.
"All we've ever had is support from Congress," she continued. "They've been wonderful. They've enacted legislation to ensure that we could get our lawsuit into a courtroom and, right now, we need a technical fix to that bill to ensure that aiding and abetting is applied properly."
Strada pointed out that this was something Congress was aware of, and capable of doing, but "the Biden administration is blocking it."
"We need President [Joe] Biden to stop taking his marching orders from the kingdom, and we need for him to tell Congress to stop taking their marching orders from the kingdom. The kingdom is in Congress right now with an army of lobbyists fighting on the Hill that we do not receive justice, and that is outrageous."
The 9/11 plea deals were scuttled by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in August following intense public backlash, but were revived by a military judge earlier this week. Asked how her organization plans to respond to the judge's move, Strada said the group would fall back on its strategy from over the summer.
"We got very loud and very vocal, and we were writing letters and it looks like a political game of ping pong here because they pulled it right before the election," she said. "And right after the election, it's back on the table. This is really a cruel thing to do to the families that have suffered through so much and all they want to see is justice."
With the presidential election decided and Republican Donald Trump now the president-elect, Strada said the families would "definitely be reaching out" to him to "see where he stands on this."
"Leaders lead, and we're lacking that right now," she said. "So, I do sincerely hope that President Trump will come into office and get all of this straightened out for us, including the fight with the Saudis."
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