McLEAN, Va. — Former Vice President Dick Cheney weighed in Monday on the case of the United States Marine who was thrown in jail by Mexican authorities several months ago for crossing the border with guns in his car.
Sgt. Andrew Tahmooressi, 25, was arrested in Mexico near the border with the California on April 1 on a weapons charge. Tahmooressi said he entered Mexico accidentally and had not intended to leave the United States.
Cheney spoke to The Daily Caller on Monday about the new political group he is forming. Asked about the case, Cheney said of the Obama administration: “I think they ought to press very hard to release the guy. I don’t know the details of the case, but it strikes me that it’s fundamentally an unfriendly act for them to continue to hold them.”
Tahmooressi, a veteran of the war in Afghanistan, was in California being treated for post-traumatic stress disorder. A number of lawmakers have called for Tahmooressi’s release, citing safety concerns for the Marine.
Tahmooressi has said he was beaten and chained to a bed while incarcerated after unsuccessfully trying to escape.
Cheney is doing interviews to promote the Alliance for a Strong America, the group he and his daughter, Liz, are forming to “advocate for a restoration of American strength and power.”
Videography by Grae Stafford. Katie Frates contributed photography, and Jane Bartlett Pappas contributed to this report.