Gold Star father says Biden-Harris 'refused' his son's service as fallen Afghanistan soldiers honored in California

EXCLUSIVE — A group of California lawmakers will honor Thursday four of the 13 U.S. service members who lost their lives during the Biden administration's disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021.

Republican Rep. Bill Essayli, who spearheaded the effort, plans to honor Corporal Kareem Nikoui, who along with his fellow service members was killed in a suicide bombing at Hamid Karzai International Airport during an evacuation. At least 180 civilians were killed in the attack.

The four service members honored Thursday at the California State Capitol were all from the Golden State.

Essayli told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview that he was moved to hear Gold Star father Herman Lopez speak at the 2024 Republican National Convention about his son, Corporal Hunter Lopez, who also died in the suicide bombing.

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Bill Essayi, Representative from California (California State Assembly)

“I found it very moving and I asked my team, ‘Have we done anything at the Capitol for these families?’ And they didn’t remember us doing anything to honor the soldiers,” Essayli said. “I said, ‘We’re coming up on the anniversary here, and I think it’s very appropriate. So why don’t we invite the families and honor them on the floor of the California Capitol.’”

Essayli and his colleagues will present memorial resolutions to each of the Gold Star families. Members of each of the respective districts will then say a few words about each fallen service member.

Steve Nikoui, the father of the Gold Star star, who lost his son Kareem in the attack and who will be in attendance at the ceremony, told Fox News Digital that the last three years have been incredibly difficult. About a year after Kareem's death, his other son committed suicide.

Master Corporal Kareem Nikoui was one of 13 U.S. service members killed in the August 2021 suicide bombing at Kabul airport during the U.S. evacuation from Afghanistan. (Courtesy of the Nikoui family)

“I did the right thing, like normal people would do. I spent the first few years healing,” Nikoui said, fighting back tears before turning his anger toward the Biden administration.

“During this time, the administration has continually denied their service, their sacrifice and what happened, and refused to let the American people know the truth,” Nikoui said.

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Nikoui booed President Biden during his State of the Union address in March, repeatedly shouting “Abbey Gate,” a nod to the location of the airport where the Aug. 26, 2021, suicide bombing took place.

Steve Nikoui shouts as President Biden, not pictured, speaks during the State of the Union address at the U.S. Capitol, March 7, 2024. (Shawn Thew/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Nikoui was later removed from the House gallery by Capitol Police and arrested on a misdemeanor count of crowding, obstructing or disturbing the peace. Brian Schwalb, the Democratic attorney general in Washington, D.C., later dropped the charges.

Nikoui said Biden had the opportunity to bring the country together by honoring fallen U.S. service members during his State of the Union address, but he “chose not to.”

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“He chose to honor and invoke his son’s name. I think that’s what brought down this administration. And it’s our civilization, our society, our America that has paid the price … through this withdrawal,” Nikoui said. “We’re really suffering a lot.”

Essayli criticized Democrats for never taking the initiative to honor fallen American service members.

In this photo provided by the U.S. Air Force, flag-draped transfer cases line the interior of a C-17 Globemaster II on Aug. 29, 2021, before a dignified transfer at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware. (Jason Minto/US Air Force via Getty Images)

“Democrats are very good at pandering to veterans and saying they care about them. But when it comes to actually honoring veterans and helping them, I don’t see any action to do that. The fact that they never thought of having this ceremony and they never took the initiative, I think, speaks volumes,” Essayli said, noting that California lawmakers have honored the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, a group that mocks the Catholic faith.

Essayli said he hoped Thursday's ceremony would highlight the two choices the American people face in the November election: former President Trump, whom he credits for not starting new wars, and Vice President Harris, who represents the legacy of the Biden administration.

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“There are conflicts all over the world. So leadership is important and weakness is a provocation,” Essayli said. “That would be my message.”