Editorial: Marc Fogel Act is important step forward in bringing detainees home

Marc Fogel’s name has been relatively lost in the conversation about Americans detained in Russia.

In Southwestern Pennsylvania, we hear it a lot because Fogel is one of our own: a teacher from Oakmont with family who lives here and waits for his return.

But outside the area, his name seldom comes up. We hear about Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and ex-Marine Paul Whelan, both of whom have been accused of espionage. We hear them called out as wrongfully detained, but we rarely hear Fogel’s name mentioned. When we do, it is by the Pennsylvania congressional delegation or by diplomat Michael McFaul, the former U.S. ambassador to Russia whose son was one of Fogel’s students.

The State Department does not bring him up. Neither does President Joe Biden.

When you ask the State Department about the detainees, the information seems canned. It is also very different among the three men. Gershkovich and Whelan should be released immediately, a spokesperson said Monday. Fogel, who has been in custody since August 2021 for possession of medical marijuana, should be released on humanitarian grounds; no urgency is attached.

The impression is that Gershkovich and Whelan are political prisoners, and they are valuable. Fogel appears to be seen as someone who broke the rules and deserves what he got despite doing exactly what WNBA star Brittney Griner did. Griner was brought home in a prisoner swap in December. The State Department won’t address comparisons.

Now four lawmakers are putting Fogel’s name front and center by introducing legislation. The Marc Fogel Act demands more transparency in wrongfully detained designations. The bill would require Congress to be informed, with documentation, about why a wrongful detention designation is not made within 180 days.

U.S. Reps. Guy Reschenthaler and Mike Kelly, both Republicans, and Reps. Chris Deluzio and Brendan Boyle, both Democrats, have been calling for the State Department to label Fogel as wrongfully detained for months, with no movement. Gershkovich received the designation within days. For Whelan, arrested in 2018, it took years.

The bipartisanship of the act needs to be genuine to be a strong tool. It requires the Republicans to be understanding of the Biden administration’s delicate negotiating position as Russia is wracked by war with Ukraine and mutiny. It demands the Democrats be the bad cop, pushing on their party leaders from within.

But legislators from all over Pennsylvania and the nation need to be united in speaking Fogel’s name to keep it and the act named for him at the forefront of conversation.

For one year and 10 months, a Pennsylvania teacher has been behind bars in Russia. If he is not going to be brought home, the least the State Department can do is be crystal clear with Congress about why.