WASHINGTON – Former President Donald Trump’s campaign is winding down informs about the dispute During a visit to Arlington National Cemetery on Monday, a move that expressed concern about the event’s potential political ramifications.
“In Arlington, a nameless bureaucrat whose job it is to preserve the dignity of the cemetery is trying to turn a very solemn and respectful event into something it is not,” said Chris LaCivita, a senior advisor to the Trump campaign. retired Marine who was with Trump at the cemetery on Monday.
Trump has long presented himself as a champion of the military and veterans — a sentiment backed up by Monday’s ceremony attendees. But he has set a pattern of disparaging the military, leading even some of his former aides to question the authenticity of his support for the military.
The latest episode threatens to end his attacks on President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. 2021 terrorist attack At the so-called Abbey Gate of Kabul airport, which killed 13 American servicemen.
Monday was the third anniversary of the bombings that took Trump to Arlington Cemetery in the Virginia suburb of Washington, as the US made its troubled withdrawal from Afghanistan. He laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier as a sign of respect for those who died in the bombings, and then moved to the 60th section reserved for participants of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.
Trump was joined at both sites by family members of the men and women killed at Abbey Gate. Family members invited him to attend the memorial service and wanted to document the moment, according to two people who were there.
“I gave my permission,” said Kelly Barnett, mother of Marine Staff Sgt. Darin “Taylor” Hoover told NBC News. “I wanted the memories. I wanted to make sure that my family at home—I have a big family—that they were involved in this and that they could see it and feel it, have the experience. And so I said yes, in a vague way, I agree with that.”
Trump posed for a photo next to Hoover’s grave, smiling and giving a thumbs-up gesture in a shot that also included the headstones of other service members who did not attend Monday’s ceremony.
A federal regulation warns Commemorations at army cemeteries “will not include partisan political activity.”
Paul Rieckhoff, founder and executive director of the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America group, sharply criticized Trump’s visit.
“I’ve never seen a politician in my life smile and give a thumbs up at the grave of a fallen Marine. It’s inappropriate,” he told NBC News. “It’s disrespectful. This is Arlington National Cemetery, not Disney World, and it should be respected as such.”
“Now they’re literally in a PR battle — not with some liberal news outlet, but with Arlington National Cemetery,” he said. “This is not a group of partisans. This is not the Kamala Harris campaign. This is Arlington National Cemetery, which I think rightly maintains the line of good order and discipline that is expected in such a sacred place.”
NPR reported first On Tuesday, two Trump campaign staffers clashed with a cemetery official who tried to stop them from filming.
“We can confirm that there was an incident and a protocol has been drawn up,” the cemetery said etcas it helpsdefinition.
Whatever happened, Barnett and another attendee, who asked to remain anonymous without permission to speak for the families, said they saw nothing untoward.
“We didn’t hear about it until the next morning,” said a second participant who did not believe Trump’s involvement amounted to campaign activity.
“It was not politicized,” he said.
Trump posted a video It included clips from Monday’s ceremony on her TikTok account. In the video, he blamed Biden and Harris for the deaths at the Kabul airport.
According to exit polls, Trump, like most Republican presidential candidates in recent decades, won a majority of voters who served in the military. But his edge was smaller in Defeat in 2020 – from 54% to 44% – since winning this part of the electorate 61% Up to 34% When he was elected president in 2016.
His aides have publicly denied the report of the physical interaction at the cemetery and accused Democrats of ignoring the anniversary, the starkest reminder of a politically damaging retreat for Biden.
“They’re trying to confuse the fact that there was only one commander in chief in Arlington on August 26,” LaCivita said. He noted that Biden was on vacation and Harris did not visit Arlington for the anniversary. statements.
Neither Trump nor Democratic presidential candidate Harris served in uniform. Their running mates are Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, and Gov. Tim Walz, D-Minn.
Harris’ campaign declined to comment on news of the controversy in Arlington, but his communications director, Michael Tyler, spoke about it in an interview with CNN on Tuesday.
“Frankly, when it’s all said and done, this episode is pretty sad,” Tyler said. “Listen, this is what we expect from Donald Trump and his team. Donald Trump is a man who wants to make everything about Donald Trump. He’s also someone who has a history of humiliating and demeaning military personnel. Those who make the ultimate sacrifice.”
A Trump adviser speaking to NBC News pointed to his statement It was signed by five Gold Star family members and two Purple Heart recipients, who defended him during the firestorm with Trump on Monday. They said in a statement that they allowed Trump’s videographer and photographer to capture those moments so they could “live these memories forever.”
“Everyone who attended the day was at their invitation,” the person said. “This was not a campaign event. It was an event put on by the families of those men, who invited the Commander-in-Chief, who has consistently shown strong and unwavering support for them, all military personnel and their families.”
The person said Trump was “grateful” for the invitation and would show “how determined he is to make sure the people who caused this crazy and disastrous retreat are held accountable when he gets back to the White House.”
Two senior campaign officials said the Trump staff and the cemetery’s public relations staff coordinated the details of planning the event at least several days in advance.
The conservative Daily Caller published Wednesday report Abbey Gate said the families of the victims initially struggled to let Trump into the cemetery with them.
Darin Hoover, father of Sgt. Darin “Taylor” Hoover told NBC News that he heard through a contact who works with Gold Star families that there was “a lot of back-and-forth” between the Trump staff and Arlington Cemetery, and that the former president would not be allowed inside. .
Hoover said he and Barnett called House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCall (R-Texas) to help fix the situation. McCaul’s office later informed Hoover that a group of congressmen, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, had been brought in to ensure Trump could attend.
In a statement to NBC News, McCaul said he was “outraged” to hear that their request had been “blocked.”
“I immediately asked what I could do to help and reached out to Speaker Johnson to see what he could do,” she said. “Thankfully, Speaker Johnson and his team acted quickly and were able to resolve the situation.”
Johnson’s spokesperson confirmed to NBC News that he intervened. Neither the Trump campaign nor Arlington Cemetery immediately responded to a request for comment Tuesday night.
The Trump campaign’s handling of the episode raised some eyebrows among Republicans after details leaked to the media, particularly when communications director Stephen Cheung said that “an unnamed individual suffering from a mental health episode decided to physically block members of President Trump. team during a very solemn ceremony.”
A Republican operative, who did not want to be named, called the statement “so unprofessional.” Meanwhile, a Trump ally said the “behavior” at the cemetery was “really out of character” for the campaign.
For years, Trump has been accused of disrespecting veterans and members of the military.
Earlier this year omocked the late Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., because he was unable to raise his arms due to injuries sustained as a prisoner of war. In 2015, he also said McCain was not a “war hero” because he was “captured.”
“I love people who don’t get caught,” he said.
A Vietnam War veteran, McCain rose to national prominence during his time as a prisoner of war at the infamous Hanoi Hilton, where he was tortured.
This period, Trump also quis appreciated Why Nikki Haley’s husband wasn’t with her during the Republican primaries. Major Michael Haley was serving overseas at the time.
Just this monthTrump called the Presidential Medal of Freedom, a civilian honor, “better” than the Medal of Honor, a military honor, because recipients of the latter often die or are seriously injured.
Former White House chief John Kelly he said last year his former boss described veterans and military personnel as “suckers” and “losers.” Atlantic years ago. Trump has vehemently and repeatedly denied such comments.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, a Democrat and Army veteran, pointed to Trump’s comments about the Medal of Honor and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, adding that the episode at Arlington National Cemetery “seems to be a continuation of something that I just find really problematic. .”
“There is an attack on those in the military and a growing politicization and disrespect for those who have chosen to serve this country,” he said, adding that he still wants to learn more about what happened between Trump’s staff and the cemetery official.
At their convention last week, Democrats took Trump to task on military issues, emphasizing the theme of patriotism. Former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Trump “doesn’t understand the service and sacrifice of our military” and that he is the only president since World War II to “disrespect our veterans and their sacrifice.”
But for Republicans, the episode served to highlight what they see as one of the Biden administration’s biggest failures in Afghanistan, a key part of its message of global instability over the past four years.
“The veterans I’ve talked to certainly feel disrespected and frustrated with their commander-in-chief in the direction of the United States militarily,” said Rep. Rob Mercury of Pennsylvania, a veteran and congressional candidate in the swing 17th District. district with a large veteran population. “The only thing I will say about President Trump is that his plan is a show of force. “I think it’s really important to get back to the Reagan Doctrine of peace through strength.”