{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://chrissmith.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=397411", "Smith Demands President Obama Intervene to Help Wounded Marine Unjustly Held in Mexico", "2014-10-01", "2014", "2014-10", "Republican", "House", "NJ", "Christopher Smith", "S000522", "chrissmith.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04) Wednesday called on President Obama to get personally engaged and work to resolve the case of Marine Sgt. Andrew Tahmooressi, who has been imprisoned in Mexico for 184 days, and bring our Marine back home. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt is a dereliction of duty on the part of the President,\u201d Smith said at a hearing on Capitol Hill entitled Sergeant Andrew Tahmooressi: Our Marine in Mexican Custody. \u201cAnd not just that he hasn\u2019t called [Mexico's] President Nieto, but that he has not put the full court press on the Mexican government to release Andrew.\u201d Click here to watch video \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The committee heard testimony Oct. 1 from Sgt. Tahmooressi\u2019s mother Jill Tahmooressi; Lieutenant Commander Montel B. Williams, USN, (Retired); Mr. Pete Hegseth, CEO of the Concerned Veterans for America; and Sergeant Robert Buchanan, USMC, (Retired) who served with Sgt. Tahmooressi in Afghanistan. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Mrs. Tahmooressi described her son as\"privileged to serve the war on terror\" and \"willing to lose his life for freedom, liberty and elimination of oppression.\" \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0All witnesses expressed concerns for the safety and wellbeing of Sgt. Tahmooressi and the inaction on the part of this Administration to make any effort to contact the family in their time of need or to address this injustice directly with the Government of Mexico. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Smith also stressed how Sgt. Tahmooressi\u2019s continued incarceration and declining health could have long-term negative consequences for his wellbeing. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI served 26 years on the Veterans Affairs Committee, including a stint as chair,\u201d said Smith.\u00a0 \u201cSix months of inattention to any service-connected disability\u2014physical or psychological\u2014causes that condition to fester and worsen. The ongoing appeal to the Mexican government is simple and direct: release Andrew now so he can procure badly needed treatment for PTSD. Andrew\u2019s release must be immediate, or he is likely to get sicker. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cOur Marine Sergeant is suffering from physiological wounds as a result of his service to our country and we must press for an expeditious and just resolution of his case and a speedy homecoming, not only for his own wellbeing but also the wellbeing of his family, which has been so tirelessly advocating for his return.\u201d \r\n\r\n\r\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Smith has worked on numerous cases where Americans citizens have been unjustly incarcerated overseas, including the imprisonment of American Jacob Ostreicher in Bolivia, or wrongfully separated from their loved ones, as in the case of David Goldman of New Jersey and his son Sean.\r\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI believe that for all Americans, military or civilian, who have been unjustly imprisoned or held, our government must do everything possible to secure their release and reunification with their loved ones,\u201d Smith said.\r\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI understand how difficult it can be in dealing with foreign governments\u2014even our own neighbors\u2014on behalf of our citizens caught up in their legal processes,\u201d said Smith.\u00a0 \u201cBut we must continue to pressure the Administration and the Mexican government to release Sgt. Tahmooressi, so he may be returned to the loving embrace of his family and find the peace and recovery he so very much deserves.\u201d \r\n Smith is a co-sponsor of H Res 620, a resolution calling upon the President to utilize the full authority of his office to secure the immediate release of Sgt. Tahmooressi, and for the Government of Mexico to return him to the United States with all possible speed so he can receive the appropriate medical assistance.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://chrissmith.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=397411"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8736550807952881, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}