Jim McCollum’s son, Marine Lance Corporal Rylee McCollum, was one of the 13 service members killed during Joe Biden’s and Kamala Harris’s disastrous Afghanistan withdrawal. Congress posthumously bestowed upon the 13 the Congressional Gold Medal this week. Jim, who attended the ceremony along with the other Gold Star families, said that House Speaker Mike Johnson’s apology during the event was especially meaningful.
“I know many of you have yet to hear these words, so I will say them — we are sorry. The United States government should have done everything to protect our troops,” Johnson said on Tuesday.
Those aren’t the only words that Biden and Harris have yet to say; neither politician has spoken aloud the names of the 13 service members killed as a result of their botched withdrawal, and neither of them has expressed remorse for the operation. Ahead of Tuesday evening’s presidential debate, Jim appeared on Fox News with a request for Harris.
“Own up to the mistakes — we all make mistakes, things happen, it was a difficult situation, and a difficult time — but to not say anything has been absolutely heartbreaking for us,” Jim said. “So let’s move forward, mention them, acknowledge them, acknowledge the mistakes, and if she would say ‘I’m sorry,’ I think that would be huge for us and for Americans to start moving forward. It would be something. A step in the right direction.”
Harris, during the debate, had several opportunities to apologize for her administration’s failures. She instead lauded Biden’s decision: “Well, I will tell you I agree with President Biden’s decision to pull out of Afghanistan. Four presidents said they would, and Joe Biden did. And as a result, America’s taxpayers are not paying the $300 million a day we were paying for that endless war,” Harris said last night, forgoing mention of the 13 individuals killed by that decision.