Army defends Arlington National Cemetery worker after incident with Trump campaign
The Army said Thursday that an Arlington National Cemetery official has been “unfairly attacked” for an incident involving the Trump campaign this week, related to a visit involving the former president and military family members.
The Trump campaign shot a video of former President Donald Trump at the cemetery, where he attended a memorial for 13 American soldiers who died three years ago at the Kabul airport as the U.S. withdrew from Afghanistan.
He accompanied some family members to a grave site area of the cemetery known as Section 60, where a video was shot after a Trump aide and the cemetery employee got into a brief standoff. Army regulations and Defense Department policies prohibit political activities on cemetery grounds.
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In a statement, the Army said a cemetery employee “who attempted to ensure adherence to these rules was abruptly pushed aside.”
The Army said the employee “acted with professionalism and avoided further disruption.”
She reported the incident to military police, but subsequently decided not to press charges.
“The incident was unfortunate, and it is also unfortunate that the ANC employee and her professionalism has been unfairly attacked,” the Army statement said, adding that the matter is now considered closed.
The Trump campaign earlier this week released a statement, contesting accounts that there was a physical altercation.
A Trump campaign spokesman, Steven Cheung, previously said an individual “clearly suffering from a mental health episode, decided to physically block members of President Trump’s team during a very solemn ceremony.”
The incident was first reported by NPR.
The campaign has also said military family members invited him to accompany them to a grave site.
The Trump campaign has released a TikTok video of the former president at the cemetery, eliciting widespread criticism.
“It’s sad but all too expected that Donald Trump would desecrate this hallowed ground and put campaign politics ahead of honoring our heroes,” Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., said in a statement released Wednesday.
Connolly had also urged Arlington National Cemetery to release details of the incident involving the former president.
U.S. Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, Trump’s running mate, said Wednesday that Vice President Kamala Harris can “go to hell” over the Biden administration’s handling of the 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan.
His comment came in response to a question from a reporter about the incident at Arlington National Cemetery.
Vance accused Harris of criticizing the former president’s visit to the cemetery, but she had not commented on it Wednesday.
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, who was also at the cemetery Monday, was criticized after he sent out a campaign email that showed a photo of him and Trump attending the memorial.
The Cox campaign has apologized for using the photo.
A graveside ceremony honored Sgt. Darin Taylor Hoover of Utah, who was one of the 13 service members killed in the airport bombing.
“This was not a campaign event and was never intended to be used by the campaign,” the governor wrote on the social media platform X.