Biden below fireplace for managing of Brittney Griner's detention in Russia

Haisten Willis

July 07, 06:15 AM July 07, 06:15 AM

The Biden administration is dealing with intense scrutiny over its handling of WNBA star Brittney Griner's detention in Russia, with some questioning the White House's motivation to serving to based mostly on Griner's race and gender.

Detained in Russia due to the fact Feb. 17 on cannabis-related fees, Griner has penned a letter to President Joe Biden while her good friends and spouse and children plead with the administration to aid. The Point out Department deemed her wrongfully detained in Might, and Biden met with her wife, Cherelle, on Wednesday.

'EVERY AVENUE TO Provide BRITTNEY HOME': BIDEN RESPONDS TO WNBA STAR'S LETTER

"The president presented his guidance to Cherelle and Brittney’s household, and he committed to making sure they are presented with all attainable help whilst his administration pursues just about every avenue to bring Brittney property," a White House readout of the discussion states.

Biden will now deliver a letter back to the detained basketball star, who has also spoken with national safety adviser Jake Sullivan and Secretary of Point out Antony Blinken.

But none of that is appeasing Griner's advocates.

"If it was LeBron [James], he'd be dwelling, right?" Phoenix Mercury coach Vanessa Nygaard reported when speaking to reporters Monday. "It's a assertion about the value of girls. It's a assertion about the worth of a black human being. It's a assertion about the price of a gay particular person. All of individuals items. We know it, and so that is what hurts a tiny extra."

The Rev. Al Sharpton is arranging a "clergy stop by" to Russia and desires to check out Griner in individual.

“It’s my intention to be in Russia following 7 days, and I hope the White Household will support to make it possible for me to do a clergy go to to allow her know of the aid and to enable her know that her loved ones and anyone is involved about her and pray with her and carry some pastors with me," he claimed for the duration of an visual appearance on MSNBC's Morning Joe.

Jonathan Franks, a spokesman for the Deliver Our Families Dwelling Marketing campaign, was also critical of Biden for the duration of a assertion produced Wednesday.

"That our constituent families’ liked kinds felt the have to have to generate these open communications to President Biden speaks to the extent to which numerous hostage family members really feel allow down, still left driving, and often ghosted by final decision makers in the West Wing," she mentioned. "When households do acquire ‘replies’ they are usually perfunctory and non-responsive.”

The campaign introduced its have open letter to Biden two months ago asking for a conference with the president and has but to hear back. Identical fears of a deficiency of motion have plagued the Biden administration on other problems as properly.

But past the optics, the mechanics of the predicament present their individual challenges.

When previous Maritime Trevor Reed was returned to the United States following spending three a long time detained in Russia, the U.S. exchanged him for Konstantin Yaroshenko, a Russian pilot serving a 20-calendar year federal jail sentence in Connecticut for conspiracy to smuggle medicine into the U.S.

That move brought about consternation for the family of Paul Whelan, one more previous Maritime also detained in the place. David Whelan, Paul Whelan's brother, explained to the Washington Examiner in April that Reed's return was bittersweet for the reason that it still left the U.S. with fewer choices to negotiate for Paul Whelan's return.

“In truth, the a lot more I imagine about it, I assume of each and every detainee in any country currently being on a different coach observe. In advance of, I believe, I've thought of them all — very well, you know, all the ones in Russia would be dealt the exact,” David Whelan mentioned. “Now, I consider they’re all particular person trains on specific tracks, and some of those trains will get to their spot, and there'll be reduction. And some of individuals trains will not likely, and it does not make any difference if someone in the exact same country as your loved a person receives no cost.“

The same dynamic may possibly now be at perform with efforts to return Griner.

It is considered that Russian authorities may perhaps want to trade Griner for Viktor Bout, an arms supplier and former Soviet military officer, according to Politico, but that the Biden administration considers Bout "as well higher a value."

The White Dwelling does seem to be responding to community stress, announcing the meeting with Griner's spouse and letter of reaction one day immediately after a number of reporters pressed press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on the concern.

"This is an concern that is a precedence for this president, as you have read us say prior to," she said. "He thinks that any U.S. nationwide that is held abroad or detained or held hostage abroad we have to have to convey back safely, and we are likely to use each individual software that we potentially can to make that transpire."

Excerpts from the letter tackled to Biden launched on Monday reveal that Griner is "terrified" she will by no means be freed from Russian custody.