Press Secretary Jen Psaki declared that Thursday was “not a day for politics” in response to a question about congressional Republicans calling for President Joe Biden to resign.
At least four Republicans called on Biden to resign on Thursday following a terrorist attack at Hamid Karzai International Airport (HKIA) that killed at least 12 American soldiers. ISIS-Khorasan Province took responsibility for the attack, which made Thursday the third-deadliest day in the U.S.’s 20-year long war in Afghanistan.
“This is a day where U.S. service members, 12 of them, lost their lives at the hands of terrorists. It’s not a day for politics and we would expect that any American, whether they’re elected or not, would stand with us and the commitment to going after and fighting, and killing those terrorists wherever they live and to honoring the memory of service members. That’s what this day is for,” Psaki said.
Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, Tennessee Sen. Marsha Blackburn, Georgia Rep. Mark Green and North Carolina Rep. Mark Walker called on Biden to resign over the attack. (RELATED: Congressmen Across The Board Demand Biden Respond To ‘Murderous’ Terrorist Attack, Keep Americans Safe)
“We must reject the falsehood peddled by a feckless president that this was the only option for withdrawal. This is the product of Joe Biden’s catastrophic failure of leadership. It is now painfully clear he has neither the will nor the capacity to lead. He must resign,” Hawley said in a statement.
Republicans in Congress have questioned Biden’s mental state throughout the chaotic withdrawal. At least eight members of the GOP had questioned Biden’s mental fitness or called on him to resign before Thursday, including New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, the third-highest ranking Republican in the House, and Florida Sen. Rick Scott, the chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee.