The Army issued an extremely rare rebuke of the Trump campaign on Thursday, saying that it was warned not to turn a visit to Arlington National Cemetery into a political event.
But he did. As with so much that Donald Trump touches, the event immediately became extremely political, in wanton violation of both unspoken norms and the law.
Trump held an event at the cemetery on Monday to mark the three-year anniversary of the Kabul Airport bombing, in which a suicide bomber affiliated with ISIS-K killed 13 U.S. servicemembers and 170 Afghan civilians.
At the event, Trump initially laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, flanked there by servicemembers who were wounded in the attack and their families. The Trump campaign released a TikTok video of that portion of the event.
Per federal regulations, military cemeteries cannot be used to stage partisan political events.
From there, Trump and his entourage moved to Section 60 — a division of Arlington National Cemetery that contains the graves of recent casualties.
There, per the Army statement, a cemetery employee tried to ensure that visitors complied with what they had been told: that political activities were prohibited on cemetery grounds.
At that point, the employee “who attempted to ensure adherence” was “abruptly pushed aside,” the Army said.
“Consistent with the decorum expected at ANC, this employee acted with professionalism and avoided further disruption,” the statement reads.
The employee filed a report with Joint Base Myer – Henderson Hall, an attached military installation, but declined to press charges, the statement said.
In the intervening days, various Trump campaign officials went out of their way to smear and intimidate the employee who, the Army said, tried to ensure that the Trump event proceeded like the 3,000 public ceremonies that take place each year at the cemetery: “without incident.”
When NPR reported the altercation, citing an unnamed source, Trump spokesman Steve Cheung accused the person of suffering from a mental health episode, and made the predictably hollow claim that they would release video to disprove the “defamatory” allegation of a physical altercation. Trump campaign co-chair Chris LaCivita called the employee a “disgrace.” The Trump campaign did not release any video of the incident.
The Army, through its statement, has now further backed up the claim that there was a physical altercation, while placing the blame entirely on the Trump campaign.
“This incident was unfortunate, and it is also unfortunate that the ANC employee and her professionalism has been unfairly attacked,” the statement reads. “ANC is a national shrine to the honored dead of the Armed Forces, and its dedicated staff will continue to ensure public ceremonies are conducted with the dignity and respect the nation’s fallen deserve.”
After Trump and his entourage made it past the employee into Section 60, they stopped to pose for a photo. Trump beamed and gave a thumbs up, per a photo posted by Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R), a member of the group:
There is no greater sacrifice than giving one’s life in defense of our country. It was my solemn privilege to stand alongside the family of Staff Sgt. Darin Taylor Hoover at Arlington National Cemetery today as we paid tribute to his legacy and the 12 others who lost their lives… pic.twitter.com/tR6dhpMYsB
— Utah Gov. Spencer J. Cox (@GovCox) August 26, 2024
Read the Army spokesperson’s full statement:
Arlington National Cemetery routinely hosts public wreath laying ceremonies at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier for individuals and groups who submit requests in advance. ANC conducts nearly 3,000 such public ceremonies a year without incident.
Participants in the August 26th ceremony and the subsequent Section 60 visit were made aware of federal laws, Army regulations and DoD policies, which clearly prohibit political activities on cemetery grounds. An ANC employee who attempted to ensure adherence to these rules was abruptly pushed aside. Consistent with the decorum expected at ANC, this employee acted with professionalism and avoided further disruption. The incident was reported to the JBM-HH police department, but the employee subsequently decided not to press charges. Therefore, the Army considers this matter closed.
This incident was unfortunate, and it is also unfortunate that the ANC employee and her professionalism has been unfairly attacked. ANC is a national shrine to the honored dead of the Armed Forces, and its dedicated staff will continue to ensure public ceremonies are conducted with the dignity and respect the nation’s fallen deserve.
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