Welcome Home!

Late last Friday evening, word got out the Sgt. Andrew Tahmooressi, the US Marine being held in Mexico for taking a wrong turn at the border, had been released.  And indeed he has.

Welcome Home Sgt. Tahmooressi!

Sgt. Andrew Tahmooressi

While we are certainly thrilled to have Sgt. Tahmooressi back home, we can only imagine what pain and suffering our beloved US Marine was exposed to during what I consider to be a kidnapping.  There is no doubt Sgt. Tahmooressi will face hurdles as he tries to move forward in his life, and we offer our full support and best wishes in his endeavor.

The citizenry of our nation should be appalled that this whole ordeal ever happened in the first place.  For a citizen, much less a Marine, to be held in Mexico in the fashion he was by our supposed friend and neighbor Mexico is very troubling.

Of much more concern is that apparent lack of attention paid to this matter by our Commander in Chief, who seems to have done next to nothing to persuade the Mexican authorities to release the innocent Marine.  One might surmise, that with all the help we give Mexico on an annual basis, President Obama would have a great negotiating position to fight for his release.  By all accounts, and I will stand corrected should information come out to the contrary, Obama was not willing to engage Mexico regarding the release of Sgt. Tahmooressi.

Florida Senator Bill Nelson did not appear to be concerned about the plight of Sgt. Tahmooressi either, troubling since Sgt. Tahmooressi is from Weston down on the west coast of Florida. How sad.

Perhaps the strongest advocate for the release of Sgt. Tahmooressi was FOX News Greta Van Susteren, who continued to present his story on FOX News Channel while most media outlets buried the story. Others of note who I know helped keep the story alive were Mark Levin, Glenn Beck, Oliver North, Sean Hannity and Sarah Palin.

Rep. Tom Cotton (R-AR), Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) and Duncan Hunter (R:CA) worked hard to get Sgt. Tahmooressi released. Those who were present and most helpful in his release were Sgt. Robert Buchanan, Rep. Matt Salmon (R-AZ.), former governor Bill Richardson (D:NM), Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA) and former Marine and talk show host Montel Williams, who is among the most vocal advocate for the veterans of this nation.

It is worth noting that Sgt. Tahmooressi's mother, Jill Tahmooressi, worked tirelessly for the release of her son.  Tonight, they are together enjoying a beautiful evening here in The Sunshine State.  God Bless them both!

Squeeze The Songbirds

We are approaching the Memorial Day weekend, where most Americans, at least those who remain gainfully employed, will enjoy a three day weekend with family and friends. 

A sadly decreasing amount will take time to remember our fallen heroes, who have paved the way for the freedoms our nation currently enjoys.  Although our thoughts and prayers are unable to pay adequate respect to these brave souls, they are offered with heartfelt gratitude.

 

While we have have tens of thousands in service, perhaps in harms way and away from their families and loved ones on this holiday weekend, one US Marine on this day finds himself in a unexpectedly dangerous plight.  He is currently being held captive in a Mexican prison, essentially for trespassing and in possession of legal firearms.

Sgt. Andrew Tahmooressi, who was in San Diego for PTSD treatment, made a wrong turn at the border after dining out with friends and found himself in Mexico, where he sought assistance from the Mexican authorities.  Greta Van Susteren has more, including how easy it would have been for a wrong turn to be made at night at the border.

Sgt. Tahmooressi, who served two combat tours in Afghanistan, has now been imprisoned for over 50 days and now fears for his life.  In a point of clarification, jails in Mexico make our jails look like an afternoon dining at Taco Bell.

Given the high level of disdain of our military by the Obama administration, I know you would be shocked to learn that there has been no attempt by the administration to reach out to Mexican authorities to rectify the situation.

We will save the disgusting issues surrounding the Veterans Administration for a later post (boy howdy am I torqued), but Obama could use some goodwill in this arena, and obtaining freedom for  Sgt. Tahmooressi would seemingly be an easy way to accomplish that.  Imagine the photo op!

Secretary of State John Kerry, who served in Vietnam, visited with Mexican authorities today, perhaps championing some global climate change nonsense, but there was no hint of the subject of Sgt. Tahmooressi having been engaged.



Sgt Tahmooressi

Some are working to secure the release of Sgt. Tahmooressi, most notably Rep Duncan Hunter of California.  As reported by Investors Business Daily, Hunter, R-Calif., a member of the House Armed Services Committee, has asked Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel to suspend military aid to Mexico, including training, intelligence cooperation and equipment transfers until Tahmooressi is released, a plea that has fallen on deaf ears.

"You have the authority to suspend cooperation with the Mexican military in a number of areas," said Hunter, who served two tours as a member of the Marine Corps in Iraq and one in Afghanistan. "In light of the Mexican government's incarceration of Andrew, I urge you to immediately consider suspending training and equipment assistance to Mexico until Andrew's case is resolved."

What legitimate reason could our President have for not sternly asking for the cooperation of the Mexican authorities in this matter?  After all, Mexicans are illegally entering our country, by the hundreds, on a daily basis, usually in possession of illegal narcotics.  Should they fail to cooperate, the United States has a myriad of punitive and persuasive actions that could be taken, as their actons have grown quite tiresome.

I think Obama, due to Fast & Furious, is not pressing the issue with Mexican authorities, who might start singing like a songbird if the squeeze is placed on them.  You see, in one of the scandals the Democrats think is a political attack, it appears the Obama administration illegal gun-running operation which sold major weaponry to powerful Mexican drug cartels in a backdoor effort to attack the second amendment.

With the help of the communications arm of the administration, otherwise known as the mainstream media, the administration has done a decent job of covering up that impeachable action, and it would certainly be a shame for Mexican authorities to mess that all up now.

The actions of this President with respect to our military is disgusting, and it can no longer be tolerated.  Any and all legally permissible action must be taken, and while I doubt it will do any good, I will be placing a call to the offices of each of my Senate representation, Bill Nelson and Marco Rubio, in an effort to get our American hero, Sgt. Andrew Tahmooressi, home.

I hope you will join me.  It is something we all could, and should do, as we enjoy the Memorial Day weekend.  If we move fast, maybe Sgt. Tahmooressi can home in time to give the command to start engines Sunday at Charlotte Motor Speedway for NASCAR's running of the Coca-Cola 600.

We would honored.

#MARINEHELDINMEXICO