Coming up on the three-year anniversary of the Afghanistan suicide bombing that killed his son, gold star father Darin Hoover told Newsmax on Friday that he still has not heard from President Joe Biden or the administration, saying the disrespect "needs to stop."
"They have put Afghanistan in the rearview mirror," Hoover said on "Rob Schmitt Tonight."
Hoover's son, Marine Staff Sgt. Taylor Hoover, was one of 13 U.S. service members killed at Abbey Gate at the Kabul airport on Aug. 26, 2021. Darin Hoover said he still doesn't have an explanation. He said no answers, or condolences from the commander in chief.
"I can't really say what I wanna say on TV," Hoover told guest host Bob Brooks, when asked what his message to Biden would be this Memorial Day weekend.
"We haven't heard a word from him. And none of us have been talked to — none of us. They haven't reached out, period. And it's time to bring this back around and answer those questions. We want accountability," he continued.
"On a weekend like this, you know, with the anniversary coming up, too, something needs to be done. They need to step up and do what needs to be done in order to get us those answers," Hoover said.
"And, frankly, the country is owed those answers. All of the veterans that are from that 20-year war, all the ones that we lost in that 20-year war deserve better than what we've gotten, and he needs to step away and leave the White House."
Hoover has been a steadfast advocate for his son and the families of the 12 others killed that day amid the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan. House Republicans have asserted that the Biden administration did not heed warnings from U.S. officials on the ground, leaving service members prone to the attack.
Answers aside, Hoover said a dose of common courtesy from the White House would be a start, especially after Biden checked his watch multiple times during the dignified transfer days later.
"We all got the same canned letter that was basically a photocopy, and all of us got the exact same thing," Hoover said.
"And I just wanna mention [Biden's] watch, because Jen Psaki came out with her book, said that he only checked his watch after the dignified transfer was over. That was done almost every time the caskets were placed into the vans.
"It wasn't at the end. It was almost every single one of them, and the disrespect that's been shown to us, it needs to stop."
Taylor Hoover was 31 years old.
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Mark Swanson ✉
Mark Swanson, a Newsmax writer and editor, has nearly three decades of experience covering news, culture and politics.
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