- The three US Army reservists killed in Jordan on Saturday will return to the US
- They will hold a ‘dignified transfer’ ceremony in Dover in the coming days
- NSC spokesman John Kirby could not confirm Monday that Biden would attend
Joe Biden could skip the ceremony honoring the three US Army reservists killed in Jordan, an administration official has suggested.
The trio are likely to be taken to Dover Air Base in the coming days for a ‘dignified handover’ – a solemn military ceremony for those killed in fighting overseas.
Biden attended the ceremony for 13 soldiers killed in Afghanistan in August 2021, but it was not confirmed that he would attend this commemoration.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby was asked Monday whether Biden would attend. “I don’t have anything scheduled for him to talk to,” he said.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby was asked Monday whether Biden would attend the “dignified transfer” ceremony for the three U.S. service members killed on Sunday.
From left to right: Sp. Kennedy Sanders, Sgt. William Jerome Rivers and Spc. Breonna Alexsondria Moffett. The three US Army Reserve soldiers from Georgia were killed by a drone strike on Sunday
Attending the ceremony can be fraught, with Biden criticized in 2021 for seemingly distractedly checking his watch during the event.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki dodged why he was looking at his watch, saying, “Well, I would say his message to all the family members who were there — the ones who weren’t even there — is that he is their sons and daughters are grateful for the sacrifice they have made to the land; that he knows firsthand what it’s like to lose a child and that no one can tell or tell you anything – or that there are no words that can fill the hole that it leaves.”
But Biden’s critics reacted furiously to the possible criticism on Monday. “Heartless governance without conscience,” said someone.
“It’s best not to worry about it,” said another. “He would just watch his watch. So disgusting and a complete insult to the families of the fallen.”
Another said: ‘Personally I wouldn’t want him anywhere near me or my family because he is a disgrace.’
One said it was “all political calculations,” while another said: “Outrageous.”
Biden came under fire for appearing to look at his watch during a “dignified transfer” in 2021
Joe and Jill Biden are seen at Dover Air Force Base on August 29, 2021, next to Lloyd Austin, the Secretary of Defense
Biden salutes the soldiers involved in the August 2021 “dignified transfer” ceremony
The coffins of thirteen American soldiers who died in Afghanistan are seen being carried to the tarmac
The flag-draped coffins were taken away for burial after the ceremony
Biden’s three most recent predecessors as president all attended such dignified handovers. It was Biden’s first time participating in the ritual as president, but he has been here before.
Biden attended a dignified handover of two American soldiers killed in a suicide bombing at Bagram Airfield in the final months of his vice presidency in 2016.
In 2008, as a senator and at the request of the grieving family, he attended a rally for a soldier killed in a car bombing in Iraq. Biden told CBS’ “Face the Nation” that he had to get permission from the Pentagon to attend the handover.