Editorial: Push for Marc Fogel's release unites right and left

For months, the issue of WNBA star Brittney Griner’s release from captivity in Russia has eclipsed the cases of others.

Her fame has garnered her more attention than the case of Paul Whelan, an American held for espionage. It has definitely attracted more attention than the case of Marc Fogel, an Oakmont man who taught at the Anglo-American School in Moscow, although he was convicted of the same medical marijuana possession.

But at the moment, Fogel might have better people in his corner.

On Saturday, retired NBA bad boy Dennis Rodman, who famously made friends with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, threw his hat into the ring to help Griner, saying he would go to Moscow and secure her freedom. The Biden administration, which has been working on a prisoner exchange deal to release Griner and Whelan, is pushing for Rodman to abandon this plan.

“We believe that anything other than negotiating further through the established channel is likely to complicate and hinder those release efforts,” said U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price.

Meanwhile, Fogel is being supported by those with real pull. He has received public endorsement from former U.S. ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul, whose son was one of Fogel’s students. On Tuesday, a group of U.S. senators sent a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken urging that Fogel be reclassified as wrongfully detained.

More on Marc Fogel's case:

• U.S. senators request State Department declare Oakmont man jailed in Russia 'wrongfully detained'
• Pa. congressional members lobby Secretary of State to help Oakmont teacher in Russian prison
• Family seeks release of Oakmont teacher being held in Russian prison
• Editorial: U.S. should work to bring Oakmont's Fogel home from Russia, too
• Kamakshi Balasubramanian: Oakmont resident caught in Russia's penal system

“Such a designation will provide the warranted level of support to Marc Fogel’s family after a year of communication with Mr. Fogel only via mail and, most importantly, will require the U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs to secure Mr. Fogel’s freedom. We cannot allow Mr. Fogel to be used as a political pawn by Vladimir Putin,” the letter stated.

These are not politicians who are in lockstep on many issues.

Of course, Pennsylvania’s Pat Toomey and Bob Casey are pushing for their constituent’s freedom. But they are joined by Marco Rubio, R-Fla.; Jon Tester, D-Mont.; Steve Daines, R-Mont.; John Hickenlooper, D-Colo.; Joe Manchin, D-W.Va.; Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va.; and Tim Kaine, D-Va.

A similarly diverse group from the state’s House delegation — including Reps. Guy Reschenthaler, R-Peters; Mike Doyle, D-Forest Hills; Mike Kelly, R-Butler; and Conor Lamb, D-Mt. Lebanon, lobbied for Fogel earlier in the month.

The idea that people of both parties — people who agree on almost nothing — are signing their names and lifting their voices to put Fogel on the same footing as Griner says volumes about his case and its importance.