$500,000 worth American psychologist berates Joe Biden’s administration for ignoring Paul Whelan amid Brittney Griner’s scenario
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Brittney Griner, Dr. Umar Johnson, Joe Biden
President Joe Biden and his administration came under fire for the arrangement that ensured Brittney Griner‘s freedom while she was flying home from the Russian prison. It was due to the fact that he abandoned Paul Whelan, a former American Marine who had spent four years in custody in Russia. Dr. Umar Johnson, a psychologist from the United States, now offers his perspective.
Following the discovery of cannabis oil in Griner’s luggage at a Moscow airport in February, she spent the last ten months in detention. She was handed a 9-year prison term, and efforts to have her released were hampered by the severe deterioration in relations between Washington and Moscow that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February. But the tables have turned now as the Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout was swapped for the American basketball star, who was released in a high-profile prisoner exchange on Thursday.
The administration’s decision to approve a prisoner exchange in which the United States released a Russian arms dealer in exchange for Griner’s freedom was questioned by a number of prominent officials and activists for Americans imprisoned overseas. The ex-Marine Paul Whelan, who is currently detained in Russia on espionage accusations, is believed to have needed to be released as well as a condition of the agreement.
Speaking of the issue on “Comedy Central’s Hell of a week”, Dr. Umar Johnson, a renowned psychologist stated: “When he look at Brittney Griner, you’re lookin’ at four distinct voter basis. You’re lookin’ at the celebrity base, you’re lookin’ at the LGBTQ base, you’re lookin’ at the woman base and you’re lookin’ at the African-American base.”
Johnson later said: “These are going to be very four… very critical voter basis come election time. So they’re just arming up for that war against Donald Trump.” He might have a point in contrast to this situation as this is a move that is politically motivated rather than the other factors facing it.
Brittney Griner and her miserable situation before being brought back to the US
Griner, a 2012 alumni of Baylor University where she earned the Player of the Year Award and an NCAA title, entered the WNBA after being chosen by the Phoenix Mercury in the first round of the 2013 WNBA Draft. In 2021, the 32-year-old was named one of the top 25 players in the history of the WNBA league. She is also considered one of the top defensive players in league history.
She began her professional career in 2013 with the US women’s national basketball team, and since then, she has won a WNBA championship, two Olympic gold medals, and various All-Star and All-NBA selections. She was quite well known for being the first homosexual athlete to sign a multimillion-dollar contract with Nike.
Joe Biden hasn’t forgotten Paul Whelan
After Griner was released, American detainee Paul Whelan expressed his disappointment that more had not been done to obtain his release in an exclusive CNN interview. He stated: “I am greatly disappointed that more has not been done to secure my release, especially as the four-year anniversary of my arrest is coming up. I was arrested for a crime that never occurred. I don’t understand why I’m still sitting here.”
The POTUS Biden issued a statement from the White House saying: “We never forgot about Brittney, and we’ve not forgotten about Paul, who has been unjustly detained in Russia for years. Sadly for totally illegitimate reasons, Russia is treating Paul’s case differently than Brittney’s, and while we have not yet succeeded in securing Paul’s release we are not giving up.”
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Irvin Philip
(701 Articles Published)