‘National Disgrace’: Lawmakers Condemn Biden Administration’s Plea Deal For 9/11 Mastermind

Several lawmakers slammed the Biden administration following news of a plea deal for the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 attacks Wednesday, New York Post reported.

Lawmakers criticized a plea deal that will spare Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the accused mastermind of the 9/11 attacks and two alleged accomplices from the death penalty. The deal, which allows the three men to avoid capital punishment, has been labeled a “national disgrace” and a “total miscarriage of justice” by lawmakers across the political spectrum.

9/11 mastermind KSM and two other terrorists awaiting trial on Guantanamo Bay strike plea deals https://t.co/NoJu2IjfLM pic.twitter.com/ogleE9YwR4

— New York Post (@nypost) July 31, 2024

Republican Kentucky Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell condemned the Biden-Harris Administration for what he described as weakness in the face of America’s enemies. “The plea deal with terrorists – including Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks that killed thousands of Americans – is a revolting abdication of the government’s responsibility to defend America and provide justice,” McConnell said, New York Post reported.

“Meanwhile, the Biden-Harris Administration still seeks to release other Guantanamo terrorists back into the world. The Administration’s cowardice in the face of terror is a national disgrace.”

Republican New York Rep. Nicole Malliotakis called the plea deal “unacceptable” and emphasized the need to pursue the death penalty for those responsible for the 9/11 attacks.

Any plea deal with the terrorists responsible for killing thousands of Americans, including so many of my constituents, is unacceptable. We owe it to the victims, their families and those 9/11 heroes who continue to suffer and die from related illnesses to pursue the death… pic.twitter.com/w6oNLmgfQX

— Office of Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (@RepMalliotakis) July 31, 2024

Republican New York Rep. Mike Lawler described the plea deals as a slap in the face to the families and survivors of 9/11. “Disgusting that these terrorist scumbags are being let off without a trial. 9/11 victims, their families, and our heroic first responders deserve true justice!” he posted on Twitter. (RELATED: Biden Admin Cuts Plea Deal With 9/11 Gitmo Defendants, Death Penalty Reportedly Off The Table)

Republican Idaho Sen. James Risch also condemned the deals, saying they disappointed not only the families of 9/11 victims but all Americans. “These terrorists committed the most heinous crime imaginable and for that they deserve nothing less than the death penalty,” Risch stated, New York Post reported.

The White House clarified President Joe Biden was informed of the plea agreement only on Wednesday and had no role in the process, which is being handled through the military justice system, according to the New York Post. Former President Donald Trump’s administration previously rejected any plea bargains with the suspected terrorists held at Guantanamo.